With the transfer window not officially open yet, a few clubs have sneaked in early, confirming the deals of their new players. Liverpool have successfully signed Schalke 04 centre-back Joël Matip and Loris Karius, the former goalkeeper of 1. FSV Mainz 05. The rhythm of purchasing from the Bundesliga hasn't slowed down, as Arsenal confirmed, yesterday, the signing of Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder, Granit Xhaka.
With these moves confirmed, the speculation of potential deals has been swarming the media from all over the world. Arsenal are as usual one of these, with Xhaka locked down and playing in red, the Gunners have switched their attention to Serie A; having been linked with Juventus' Alvaro Morata and Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly.
A balance of wants and needs
Neither of these potential transfers would be left unwelcome at Arsenal. On the back of a season where upcoming transfer window targets were more than obvious, 24-year-old French centre back Koulibaly would seem to be the perfect fit. As would 23-year-old Spanish striker, Alvaro Morata.
Morata is currently playing with the Italian giants, Juventus, following his €20m transfer from Real Madrid in 2014. The Spaniard landed his team in the Champions League final in 2015, ironically by dealing a blow to his former club in the process, after scoring at the Bernabeu to put Juventus in ahead on aggregate in the second leg of the semi-final.
A change of scenery
After struggling to perform at Juventus, scoring just 15 league goals in 63 appearances, Morata has been linked with a move away from Italy as a handful of Premier League clubs have their eye on the striker. Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea and Manchester United are among the English outfits that are supposedly monitoring the movements of Morata; Arsenal are the supposed favourites with an estimated £40m on the table for the Spaniard.
Rumour also has it that Real Madrid will look to activate Morata's buy-back clause in order to sell the player to another club, complicated business it seems.
Craving a striker
Transfers are complicated, nothing can be deemed as a reliable source until the club has announced the outcome. It is true however, that Arsenal are in desperate need of a striker, as they are still looking for a worthy replacement for Robin Van Persie, who departed the club in 2012.
Arsenal player of the season, Mesut Özil will certainly be hoping for his team to employ reinforcements going into the new season. The German had only 19 of his 146 created chances converted last season, as he fell short of breaking the Premier League assist record. With Özil delaying contract talks until after the Euros, could the German's future be reliant on the introduction of a striker?
What does Morata have to offer?
Alvaro Morata's goal-to-game ratio is not perhaps impressive on paper, but the striker has proven himself worthy of playing for the biggest clubs in the world. Morata is just 23 years old, and has played for his national team, Real Madrid and Juventus, in what is an impressive career so far.
It could be suggested that the pressure on the shoulders of the young striker has caused his dip in performance, as he looks to be lacking confidence on the field at times. However, just four days ago, the young Spaniard scored the only goal in the Italian Cup final, as Juventus beat AC Milan 1-0. The goal was a typical striker's finish, clinical. The movement of the number nine was that of an accomplished forward, adjusting his feet as he struck the ball home in a composed fashion when it mattered most.
While Morata's goals may not always be spectacular, the striker knows how to score and, when presented with the chance, is liable to punish his opponents. The potential signing of Morata could help not only the player on an individual level, but Arsenal and particularly Özil too. Taking a step back from the spotlight of Europe's elite, to the developing squad of Arsenal could benefit the 23-year-old as he looks to regain confidence and an eye for goal.
Mesut Özil is certainly one who could work with the strengths of Morata, the relatively pacey striker who is good on the ball, and a positive decision maker when it comes to the creative aspect of the game, could well be the missing piece to the Arsenal title challenging puzzle. Morata is still young, and has plenty of time to develop his innate striking ability, something that regular games and the backing of a manager with the experience with youth of Arsene Wenger, could fix.
Players need time
It is no lie that players tend to take a while to adapt to the physicality of the Premier League, something that many players coming from elsewhere in Europe have difficulty with. Things can't be expected to click instantly, which goes the same with any player. Morata could be branded as a 'big game player', but the lack of goals from the striker may prove to be a worrying statistic in Arsenal's pursuit of the player, should the Gunners be taking another risk?
Nobody knows how effective or ineffective a new signing will be, it took Mesut Özil a good two seasons to reach his full potential at Arsenal, for example. However, the signing of a world known striker is a huge step in the right direction for the Gunners, as they look to build a squad that can lead them to long awaited glory.