Arsenal finished second in the Premier League for a third successive season in 2024-25 – but the fact that Liverpool leapfrogged them was undoubtedly frustrating.
In 2022-23, the Gunners were runners-up with 84 points, five points behind champions Manchester City. A year later, they improved to 89 points, closing the gap to Pep Guardiola's side to two points.
The 2024-25 campaign looked like their big opportunity, then, as Manchester City fell away – only for Arsenal to slip back to 74 points, while Liverpool became champions with 84.
For most of the past three seasons, the talk has been whether Arsenal needed a new striker to further enhance their chances of winning the title.
Only once in those three campaigns has any Gunners player hit 20 goals in all competitions during a single campaign – winger Bukayo Saka in 2023-24.
Former Arsenal defender William Gallas thinks that the decision not to sign another forward may have held them back.
"Arsenal have been looking for a striker for, I don't know exactly how long, but I know that a top class striker should have arrived at Arsenal two or three years ago, and they didn't sign one," he said. "They obviously didn't think it was that important to add a top class striker.
"I think that, when you look at their season, unfortunately, they didn't want the Premier League badly enough on a couple of occasions where they came close – last season, and also two years ago. They didn't want it enough to go and add that last missing piece of the puzzle.
"Now they are being linked with strikers again, just like they were in January. I hope they do get one of the strikers they want, because I hope they want the same thing every fan wants, which is to win the Premier League next season."
Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres have been among those linked, but asked which striker in particular would be perfect for Arsenal, a name sprung to mind immediately for Gallas.
"If they want to have a chance at winning the league next season, for me, it depends on if they go and sign a striker who knows the Premier League very well and has proven they can score the right amount of goals at the top level," he said, speaking in association with Genting Casino.
"I think the only player who fits that description right now is Alexander Isak. I know it will cost a lot of money, but he constantly scores more than 20 goals and seems to keep improving each year in the Premier League.
"So Arsenal should break the bank for him. He is the last piece of the puzzle, I feel, a perfect striker."
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