Former Arsenal captain Frank McLintock is worried about Arsenal’s lack of cover upfront and sees that as a major weakness in the side if we are to challenge for the title this season.
“I was very disappointed that we didn’t get another centre-forward before the season started,” Frank McLintock told Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek programme.
“We’ve only got Giroud and sometimes Lukas Podolski can play in that position, but he’s not as good when playing as a centre-forward – he looked quite lost and it’s the same with Theo Walcott.
“If Giroud gets injured for any length of time, then all the good work that has been done already could go out of the window. Very much so I’d like (manager) Arsene Wenger to be active in January. If we don’t get a centre-forward….
“We have a history at Arsenal of long-term injuries and if that happens to Giroud then unless we get someone in January…. but I think the club is well aware of that.
“You can’t have any weaknesses in your team (if you want to win the title) and that’s a potential weakness.”
I think we all share the same sentiments as Frank. Why Wenger did not go out and bring in another striker in the window is a mystery to me. Yes he wanted Luis Suarez but that was always going to be a complicated deal and Wenger should have had a Plan B. It is said that his Plan B was Demba Ba on loan from Chelsea but Wenger refused to pay a loan fee for the striker.
Looking at the way Arsenal are playing, there is no way we would be able to play with two strikers at the same time so if another striker comes in, they would have to be better than Giroud or be willing to sit on the bench and wait for their chance.
If push comes to shove then Podolski or Walcott with have to take the central striking role but you can be assured that they are not as clinical as Giroud. Our current style of play means that we need a big target striker like Giroud and neither Podolski or Walcott are like that. In my opinion our best bet would be to do all we can to get Karim Benzema from Real Madrid.