Gabriel Jesus replacement

Arsenal are open to signing a new striker to ensure their title bid doesn’t fall flat after Gabriel Jesus’ knee injury.

Manager Mikel Arteta said: “It’s a huge blow for us, obviously. He’s such an important player: he’s brought something very different to the team and it’s impossible to replace him.

“But we have other players, other alternatives and we’ll try to get that sorted. The transfer window is another option.

“I think [Jesus] is a unique player but Eddie [Nketiah] has incredible qualities as well for the way we want to play.

“We have other alternatives in that we can play [like Gabriel] Martinelli up front as well.

“We are currently a little bit short in terms of upfront positions but getting Emile [Smith Rowe] back is going to be a big one”

Cedric Soar point

Arsenal ace Cedric Soares’ could scupper a loan move to Fulham next month, writes SunSport’s Jack Rosser.

The Cottagers have held talks with Cedric’s representatives over a switch to West London next month with manager Marco Silva keen to sign his compatriot.

But the right-back’s weekly wage of around £75,000 is proving a stumbling block.

No official approach has been made to the Gunners so far, with manager Mikel Arteta also yet to decide whether he would sanction the Portugal international’s departure

Yes we Cun

Arsenal look set to lose out on Atletico Madrid ace Matheus Cunha with Wolves confident of landing him.

The Midland club’s new manager Julen Lopetegui is looking to bring reinforcements into Molineux after taking over.

And the club looks to have gotten a boost as the Mail indicates they are closing in on Cunha.

The striker is out of favour at Atletico and had been linked with a Premier League move.

Arsenal were among several Prem clubs linked with the 23-year-old.

But it now appears very likely the Brazil international will be heading to Wolves

Martinelli new deal

Arsenal ace Gabriel Martinelli is reportedly closing in on a new big money deal at the Emirates.

Martinelli, 21, has already scored five goals in 14 Premier League games this season, one fewer than what he achieved in the entirety of the last campaign.

The forward has also featured in every single league match this season, compared to last term when he was not always a regular starter under manager Mikel Arteta.

The Gunners’ faithful will be praying he can put Brazil’s 2022 World Cup disappointment behind him and continue to march on

Alexis Mac Allister interest

Arsenal may soon find themselves in a transfer war with Tottenham and Atletico Madrid to sign Brighton’s 2022 World Cup star Alexis Mac Allister.

Mac Allister capped a fantastic World Cup by being one of Argentina’s star players in their dramatic final win against France.

The 23-year-old is set to return to the Amex Stadium while big clubs fight over his signature.

According to AS, the Gunners and Atletico are the main contenders for the midfielder, but it is likely his value has skyrocketed after his World Cup performances.

Sky Sports add that Spurs have held an interest in the Argentine since before the tournament in Qatar

Arsenal close to Mudryk

Arsenal are “now in talks” with both Shakhtar Donetsk and Mykhaylo Mudryk’s representatives.

That is according to CBS reporter Ben Jacobs, who claims talks with Mudryk’s representatives are “easy” but negotiations with Shakhtar are “a whole lot harder”.

Jacobs said: “Arsenal have made the move on Mudryk in the sense that they are now in talks with both Shakhtar and Mudryk’s representatives.

“The talks with Mudryk’s representatives are easy because Mudryk wants Arsenal; the negotiations with Shakhtar are a whole lot harder”

Pepe booed by Tottenham fans

Arsenal star Nicolas Pepe, who is on loan at Nice, was booed by Tottenham fans as he visited North London on Wednesday.

Pepe played the full 90 minutes but was unable to produce a winning goal in the 1-1 draw.

Guardiola shares support for Jesus

Pep Guardiola has shared his sympathy for Gabriel Jesus after the Arsenal striker was ruled out for up to three months with a knee injury.

He said: “I am so sorry for Gabriel. I would prefer that he could play immediately with Arsenal.

“He’s an important player for them, like he was for us. I want him to have an incredible and speedy recovery – I am so sorry for him because I know there isn’t one person at this club who could speak badly about him, but he will be back.”

Arsenal interested in Barcelona star

Arsenal want to sign Barcelona forward Ferran Torres, according to reputable journalist Dean Jones.

Jones has claimed that Arsenal “clearly believe” Torres will be available for transfer in January, with the club having previously enquired about the 22-year-old’s availability in the summer.

Speaking to GiveMeSport Jones claimed: “They really like Ferran Torres, and they clearly believe he might become available because they inquired about him in the summer as well.

“So, if they’re sniffing around him again now, they sense that something’s up.”

Saliba has “point to prove”

Former Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell believes William Saliba will have a point to prove on his return to the Gunners squad.

Saliba was a fringe player for France at the World Cup and Campbell thinks he will be eager to impress.

He said on the Highbury Squad YouTube channel: “I think Saliba has a big point to prove as well. A big point.

“The players who played are ahead of him in the hierarchy in the [France] squad, but the reason he didn’t play is because he’s not winning and he’s got to win.

“Go back and win, keep performing, keep getting Player of the Month, keep doing well. Let Deschamps keep looking over and make sure that Saliba is on everybody’s lips. That’s important as a young player.”

Saka and Martinelli make return

Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli took part in a friendly against Luton on Wednesday.

Both players were left out of the game against Juventus on Saturday but were fit enough to play 45 minutes against the Hatters.

That means both could be in contention to start against West Ham on Boxing Day.

Beth Mead wins BBC SPOTY

Arsenal Women star Beth Mead was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year on Wednesday.

The midfielder played a key role in England winning the Euros and was named as the player of the tournament.

She said of the win: “I’m incredibly honoured to win this award.

“I wouldn’t have done it without the girls. The team have backed me. Yes, I’ve won this accolade, I’ve scored a few goals but I wouldn’t have done it without them.

“This is for women’s sport and women’s sport heading in the right direction. Let’s keep pushing girls, let’s keep doing the right thing.”

Soares loan move in doubt

Cedric Soares’ Arsenal wages could scupper a loan move to Fulham next month.

The Cottagers have held talks with the right-back’s representatives over a switch to west London next month with boss Marco Silva keen to sign his compatriot.

But the former Southampton star’s weekly wage of around £75,000 is proving a stumbling block.

Silva is keen to add to his squad next month following a strong start to the season which left the promoted side ninth ahead of the restart on Boxing Day.

No official approach has been made to the Gunners so far, with Mikel Arteta also yet to decide whether he would sanction Cedric’s departure.

Carragher fascinated by Granit Xhaka

Jame Carragher has revealed he has always been fascinated about why Granit Xhaka has always been picked by different Arsenal managers.

He told Sky Sports: “He’s had a lot of criticism but what’s always fascinated me is that it wasn’t just you – it was Arsene Wenger.

“And every manager after him, every manager always picked him.

“I just thought he must have real leadership qualities, he must be a good guy around the place.”

Prem chiefs accept VAR mistakes

Premier League chiefs have accepted there have been six game-changing “wrong” VAR decisions in the first half of the season.

Among the six shockers accepted by the Prem hierarchy was Gabriel Martinelli’s disallowed goal for Arsenal against Manchester United.

The Brazilian’s goal was chalked off after referee Paul Tierney consulted the VAR monitor and wrongly decided Martin Odegaard had fouled Christian Eriksen in the build-up.

The decision had a big impact as United took the lead shortly afterwards and won the match 3-1, inflicting Arsenal’s only league defeat of the season.

Arteta talks Ben White role

Mikel Arteta revealed he thought about moving Ben White to right-back last season – but didn’t as he needed another accomplished centre-back.

He told Sky Sports: “I already had that idea last year but I didn’t think that we had somebody in that position to replace [White] in what I wanted him to do.

“The moment that Saliba came in, in pre-season I looked at the amount of development that he had in the last year at Marseille.

“I just said ‘We need to adapt this’, and straight away after that I had in my head that we had to do Oleksandr [Zinchenko] in that way I could fit in exactly what I wanted for this team.”

Petit has Eddie Nketiah fears

Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit claims Eddie Nketiah isn’t ready to replace injured star Gabriel Jesus because he is “still young”.

He told Mega Casino: “The first eleven is of exceptional quality but the depth on the bench isn’t as good as it needs to be and if you want to compete with Manchester City, Liverpool, you need more and you need to be clever in the transfer market, especially when you’re without a player like Jesus.

“Nketiah is a good player but he is still young. He is gaining experience all the time, but you can’t replace Jesus with Nketiah and expect the same results. It is too soon for him. If you put him in and expect that, that is not fair on the player, but his time will come.”

Pablo Mari set to return

Out on loan Arsenal star Pablo Mari is set to play for the first time since being stabbed in October.

The defender was hospitalised following the attack and has been out of action for the past few weeks.

But Monza have called him up for a friendly against Lyon today and could make an appearance.

Arsenal eye free agent transfer

Arsenal are reportedly giving consideration to making an approach for Isco, who is available on a free transfer.

According to Fichajes, Arteta could insist on moving for Isco now that a transfer fee will not be involved.

The 30-year-old ended his time at Real Madrid in the summer to move to Sevilla, where it was expected that he would spend the next period of his career.

Instead, a change in head coach and fallout behind the scenes have led to Isco being released from his contract, despite 18 months still being left to run.

Arteta speaks about “idol” Guardiola

Mikel Arteta has revealed that he was determined to work with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City to help his ‘idol’ change English football.

He told Sky Sports: “We met when I was 15 years old. He was my idol, he was the one to emulate if I wanted to be a first-team player at Barcelona, and we built that relationship from there.

“And one day it was very clear to me, (Guardiola said) ‘the day that I’m in England, I have a dream to do what I did in Barcelona in this league when everybody said it is impossible to do, and I would like your help and support and experience to help me to achieve that dream’. That was it.

“We had to change a lot of the departments. We had to understand the culture of English football, how the referees act, how the media work. There was a lot of things that Pep was very interested (in), and I spent 14-15 years of my life in this country, so he was very interested in that.”

Arteta dislikes key Saliba trait

Mikel Arteta and Jamie Carragher were in agreement that they don’t like centre-backs dribbling with the ball, as they highlighted Arsenal’s William Saliba.

Arteta told Sky Sports: “I have always said, in my opinion, the hardest position to play in the Premier League is at centre-back. You can be exceptionally well in everything we ask you for, but you just need an action where you give half a yard in the box to somebody, he outjumps you and scores a goal, and then you are in all of the highlights.

“What William (Saliba) has done here, for example, he has the composure to do that (bringing the ball out from the back). In my opinion, I don’t like the central-defenders dribbling.

“He has to dribble here (against Brentford) because two seconds before he has done something that’s not right. It’s not a necessity to do that action. But he is still able to resolve that situation.”