Liverpool hero Vladimir Smicer believes Arsenal ‘might need won the Premier League already’ had they signed a £26m striker as an alternative of Viktor Gyokeres.
Gyokeres has had a mixed first season at Arsenal following his £64m move from Sporting last summer, scoring 19 goals in all competitions.
There was serious concerns over the Sweden international after he netted just five Premier League goals in the primary six months of the season, but Gyokeres has at the least improved his output since January with 16 goals for club and country.
Doubts remain over Gyokeres’ long-term viability as Arsenal’s first-choice striker, nevertheless, and the Gunners are believed to be keen on signing a brand new No. 9 this summer.
Mikel Arteta hoped Gyokeres could be the ultimate piece of the jigsaw in an Arsenal team that had finished second within the Premier League for 3 successive season.
Despite the query marks over Gyokeres, he has played a component in taking Arsenal to the highest of the Premier League table and one game away from a spot within the Champions League final.
But former Liverpool star Smicer believes Arsenal would already virtually be Premier League champions in the event that they had Patrik Schick leading the road as an alternative of Gyokeres.
‘Patrik Schick is a classic goalscorer,’ the Champions League winner told BetVictor. ‘Within the box, he’s very, very clever and he can finish from all angles.
‘His left foot is absolutely good. Unfortunately for him, he’s suffered quite a bit from muscle injuries.
‘If Schick had joined Arsenal as an alternative of Viktor Gyokeres, I believe they could have won the Premier League title already.
‘With the identical possibilities, he would have scored quite a bit more goals. I’m certain of that because he’s a a lot better finisher. I’d still prefer to see him within the Premier League.’
Schick has scored 100 goals in 207 appearances for Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen and 25 goals in 52 caps for Czech Republic.
His most famous goal – an incredible strike from the halfway line – was scored against Scotland in Euro 2020 and voted the Goal of the Tournament and nominated for the Puskas Award.
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The 30-year-old has previously been linked with a move to the Premier League with Manchester United among the many interested clubs last summer.
Smicer is actually not the one pundit to query Gyokeres, together with his former Liverpool teammate Jamie Carragher recently urging Arsenal to sign a brand new striker in the summertime.
Atletico Madrid striker and former Manchester City star Julian Alvarez – who scored against the Gunners within the Champions League semi-final first leg, is believed to be of interest to Arsenal ahead of the summer transfer window.
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