William Gallas believes Alexander Isak will be better suited at Arsenal than Chelsea as Mikel Arteta’s side plan to sign a new striker in the summer.
Isak, who has been heavily linked with both clubs, sees his contract at Newcastle expire in the summer of 2028. Arsenal missed out on the opportunity to sign a new attacker last summer as well as last month, which could cost them the Premier League title.
Chelsea meanwhile, are currently without Nicolas Jackson who is set to miss a crucial period of fixtures due to a muscular problem – leaving Enzo Maresca short of options up front. The former Chelsea and Arsenal defender Gallas, has predicted the two clubs could go head-to-head to land Jackson.
However, he claims there is only one club that Isak will fit better. “If Alexander Isak is available at £83million, I can see both Chelsea and Arsenal being interested in him,” Gallas told Slingo. “I think Chelsea will look for a new striker because of all the chances Nicolas Jackson has missed, he started the season well but he missed too many opportunities to really show the club that he was the right man for the job.
“Even though he is 23, I think he has missed a great opportunity to stop all the talk. People will put pressure on you and then run out of patience. He has left the door open for Chelsea to look for another striker. For Arsenal, they no longer have a choice. They have been forced to look at a striker in the summer after failing again in January. Looking at how he plays, I think he would suit Arsenal.
“He is strong, fast, he can score all types of goals and he can also fit into their style, he can create goals for their other attacking players also. He will want to play a bigger role than just being a finisher which is what Chelsea would want. I think he would fit in better at Arsenal.”
Earlier this month, the Newcastle boss Eddie Howe was asked just how important the Swede is to the club’s long-term ambitions. Howe said: “We have to try and keep our best players. That’s crucial to our short-term success and our long-term success, so sitting here as the manager of the football club, I’d be saying we need to keep the group together and we need to add the other way.
Although Newcastle are adamant they will not allow their big names to leave the club, not qualifying for European football this season could change that.
Join the football.london Arsenal WhatsApp channel
Join our Arsenal WhatsApp channel and get all the latest breaking news, opinion, podcasts and in-depth stories from football.london’s dedicated Arsenal writers straight to your phone!
By following this free service you will be the first to know the news from the Emirates Stadium as it happens, when it happens.
To join our dedicated Arsenal channel, all you have to do is click this link and you can join thousands of others following our Gunners coverage!
If you’re curious, you can check out our privacy policy here.
