Former England defender Michael Dawson says Arsenal should ‘prioritise’ signing a centre-forward in the summer – but capturing Joshua Kimmich on a free transfer would be a ‘no-brainer’.
Arsenal’s drop-off in this season’s title race has widely been attributed to the club’s failure to land a top striker in successive transfer windows, with the Gunners losing both Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz through injury in recent weeks.
Mikel Arteta admitted he and the club’s hierarchy were left ‘disappointed’ by their inactivity in January and dropped points against both West Ham and Nottingham Forest have only intensified calls to address the problem at the end of the campaign.
But over the last few days, rumours have been swirling over a potential move for Germany midfielder Kimmich, 30, who is out of contract at Bayern Munich in June.
Reports emanating out of Germany suggest Arsenal have expressed a strong interest in landing the eight-time Bundesliga winner, whose talks over a possible contract extension at the Allianz Arena have broken down.
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‘He’s definitely not [the whole answer for Arsenal]l,’ ex-Tottenham and England centre-back Dawson said on Sky Sports.
‘I think he’s a very, very good player. He’s done it for a long time in Germany at the age of 30. His contract is coming to an end and it doesn’t look like it’s going to be renewed.’
There remains uncertainty over the future of both Jorginho and Thomas Partey, who are both out of contract with the Gunners at the end of the 2024/25 campaign.
Kimmich is viewed as a potential solution in the middle of the park and Dawson completely understands why the north Londoners would be eyeing a move for the versatile Germany international.
‘The reason Arsenal are probably looking at this is because you go, “Is Jorginho going to go? Is Thomas Partey going to go?”, so you need to replace them,’ Dawson added.
‘And if he’s a free agent then you get the experience, the quality that he possesses and it’s a no-brainer really on that front.
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‘But I just think they need a striker, I’ve said it for long enough now. Any team needs a striker, I don’t care who you are.
‘Manchester City won the Premier League with no striker but that was a one-off. I know Liverpool don’t always play with [Darwin] Nunez with [Diogo] Jota as a number nine and different ways of playing, but I think that’s where Arsenal need to prioritise.
‘But Kimmich, I can see why they would go for him, of course. The experience and what he could bring if those two players [Jorginho and Partey] do leave Arsenal.
‘You’re bringing in someone who is tried and trusted… no-brainer.’
Bayern sporting director Max Eberl remains hopeful that the club could still reach an agreement with Kimmich over a renewal before the season comes to an end.
‘Generally speaking, nobody is above the club,’ he told German newspaper Bild.
‘If a player decides differently, then he decides differently.
‘Things will continue at FC Bayern. We are not at that point with Kimmich.
‘I’ve never given updates on negotiations, won’t be doing that now either because that’s inappropriate.
‘We treat each other with big respect – we’re talking. What’s important is how Josh and we as a club treat each other.’
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