Arteta hit the jackpot with Arsenal star who’s worth £22m more than Sesko

Mikel Arteta has been the Arsenal manager for just over four and a half years, and while there have certainly been some significant blips along the way, the Spaniard has totally transformed the north Londoners.

From back-to-back eighth-placed finishes to consecutive Premier League title races, the Gunners might not be the finished article just yet, but they’re once again one of the best teams in Europe.

Alongside Sporting Director Edu Gaspar, the Spaniard has thrown out the players deemed not good enough and replaced them with a slew of stars such as Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, and even Gabriel Magalhaes.

However, with the summer transfer window just around the corner, he’s likely to add several more, with Slovenian striker Benjamin Sesko being the latest name in the press – despite the Gunners already boasting a more valuable number nine in their side.

Kai Havetz’s form this season

The player in question is, of course, German international and increasing fan favourite at the Emirates, Kai Havertz.

Arsenal completed the £65m signing of the talented forward from cross-city rivals Chelsea last summer, and while there were questions raised at the time and detractors such as former professional Gabby Agbonlahor, who described the 24-year-old as a “joke,” it would be fair to say that the signing has been a success.

That said, it wasn’t an easy start to life for the former Bayer Leverkusen ace in north London.

He spent the majority of the first half of the season playing in the midfield, where his return of six goals in 32 games highlighted his struggles. However, a move up top at the turn of the year saw him burst into life, and a return of seven goals and seven assists in 17 games has since made him one of Arteta’s most clutch players.

In all, while it hasn’t been a perfect debut season for the Aachen-born ace, his form as a striker has been undeniable, so it begs the question: Do Arsenal need another forward?

Arsenal transfer news

According to a recent report from journalist Sam Dean, the Gunners are now believed to be in “pole” position to land RB Leipzig’s star striker Šeško in the summer transfer window “should they choose to formalise their interest.”

In Dean’s report for the Telegraph he claims that one of the priorities for the Gunners in the upcoming window is to strengthen their frontline, even though the success of Havertz as the starting striker has ‘lessened the club’s need to recruit a ready-made, experienced forward.’

This is where the 20-year-old Slovenian comes in, as while his form has been impressive in Germany this season – 17 goals and two assists in 41 appearances – he clearly isn’t the finished article and could therefore represent a project-like signing for Arteta, one who grows with the team and ultimately rivals the former Chelsea man for the starting striker role in a couple of years time.

However, just because the “prolific” forward, as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig, isn’t the finished article, doesn’t mean this is going to be a cheap deal to complete.

The Telegraph have revealed that his release clause has now risen to £64m due to his exploits for Leipzig, and while that isn’t prohibitively expensive in the modern game, it’s still something the club have to consider, especially when their current marksman is worth so much.

According to the CIES Football Observatory, the “magnificent” Arsenal ace, as described by Kulig, is worth €100m, which converts to about £86m, or £22m more than the 20-year-old’s release clause.

Ultimately, the expectation for much of the last year has been that Arsenal need to add another striker to their ranks in the summer, and while Havertz’s incredible form over the last four months or so and subsequent soaring valuation certainly suggest they already have their man, adding the incredibly promising Šeško to the mix can’t be a bad thing, and could be just another example of clever squad building from Arteta and Edu.