The Premier League season may have only just come to a painful end for Arsenal, but there is no rest for the wicked in the modern game, and while the players are off enjoying their holidays, the club are already hard at work in preparation for this summer’s transfer window.
Mikel Arteta and Edu Gaspar have enjoyed a run of brilliant summer windows for a few years now.
Last summer, they welcomed the likes of Declan Rice and Kai Havertz, while Manchester City stars Oleksandr Zinchenko and Gabriel Jesus helped to raise the standards the season before, and based on early reports, it could be another bumper window this year.
That said, one of the stars touted for a move to the Emirates is a talented youngster who has actually outscored the Gunners’ mercurial Brazilian this season.
Arsenal transfer news
According to a recent report from journalist Graeme Bailey, Arsenal are interested in Besiktas’ highly-rated “wonderkid”, Semih Kılıçsoy, and are one of the clubs “best placed” to make a move this summer.
Bailey has revealed that, alongside the Gunners, Manchester City are the other favourites for the youngster’s signature, with Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, and Newcastle United also interested.
Other reports claim that the 18-year-old could be available for around £22m, which, while not cheap for someone his age, could prove to be a bargain in the future, especially based on his performance this season.
How Kılıçsoy compares to Jesus
Now, due to him being so young and still relatively unproven in European football, Arsenal wouldn’t sign Kılıçsoy to be an immediate Jesus replacement. That would be far too much pressure to place on him, and, thanks to his reasonable price tag, he wouldn’t need to be that either.
However, despite being so young, the “physical monster,” as described by data analyst Ben Mattinson, was on fire this year and might be able to displace the Brazilian through sheer talent alone.
For example, in just 35 senior games this year, the “frightening” Istanbul-born ace, as talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, scored 12 goals. This means he scored a goal every 2.9 games, or one every 173 minutes, based on the 2083 games he played for the first team.
|
Kılıçsoy vs Jesus |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Players |
Kılıçsoy |
Jesus |
|
Appearances |
35 |
36 |
|
Minutes |
2083′ |
1909′ |
|
Goals |
12 |
8 |
|
Goals per Match |
0.34 |
0.22 |
|
Minutes per Goal |
174′ |
238′ |
|
All Stats via Transfermarkt |
||
In comparison, the Gunners’ Sao Paulo-born star could only muster eight goals in 36 games this season, meaning he averaged a goal every 4.5 games, or every 238 minutes, based on his 1909 minutes of action. Worse still for the 64-capped international is that his tally of 11 goals from last year is still fewer than the young phenom from Turkey managed this season.
In his defence, the 27-year-old’s tally of eight assists this year does take his overall goal involvement haul one higher than his potential competition’s, but considering the almost decade age gap, that’s hardly significant.
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The “complete forward” is incredibly clinical in front of goal.
Ultimately, with such an impressive debut season behind him, it’s easy to understand why Mattinson claims Kılıçsoy “won’t be in Turkey much longer”, and for that reason, Arsenal should do all they can to tempt him to North London, even if it takes him a season or two to stake a claim in the first team.
