Man Utd may have handed Arsenal a chance to sign £200m Havertz upgrade

It was another painful end to a Premier League season for Arsenal again this year, as Mikel Arteta’s side came within two points of finally ending their two-decade title drought, only for Manchester City to pick up a fourth on the trot.

The Gunners needed to be near enough perfect to win the league, but unfortunately, a shaky December and a slip-up against Aston Villa ultimately cost them.

However, with a more clinical striker in the side next season in place of Kai Havertz, the trophy’s ribbons might just be red and white this time next year.

The North Londoners have already been linked with several high-profile marksmen, although they may have just been handed a significant boost in their pursuit of one thanks to Manchester United’s FA Cup triumph.

Arsenal’s striker search

According to a recent report from football.london, Arsenal’s pursuit of Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak has just been strengthened thanks to the Red Devils’ FA Cup success over the weekend.

This is because with Erik ten Hag’s team beating Manchester City in the final, they will now qualify for the Europa League next term, pushing Chelsea down to the Conference League and therefore pushing the Toon out of European competition altogether.

This is beneficial for the Gunners because, before Saturday’s final, Eddie Howe’s team had placed a £200m price tag on the head of their star striker, confident that with the money to come from European football next season, they would not have to sell the Swede to strengthen their financial position, and would instead be able to sell a slightly less important member of the team.

However, they will no longer have that increased income or the prestige of continental football to appease their top players, which, according to football.london might’ve ‘increased’ Arsenal’s chances of signing the former Real Sociedad star.

It would still require a mammoth bid from the North Londoners, but thanks to United’s incredible 2-1 win, their pursuit of Isak is still just about alive.

How Isak compares to Havertz

So, if Edu Gaspar and Co were able to work their magic – and Stan Kroenke’s wallet – to bring Isak to the Emirates this summer, he’d likely be faced with Havertz as his most significant challenge for the starting number nine role, as Gabriel Jesus, in starting just four of the final 12 league games last season, has already lost that place to the German.

With that said, when comparing the pair’s raw output this season, the Swede comes out miles ahead, scoring 25 goals and providing two assists in 40 games, meaning he averaged a goal involvement every 1.48 games for an injury-ravaged Magpies outfit.

In contrast, the German racked up 14 goals and seven assists in 51 games, meaning he averaged a goal involvement every 2.4 games in his first season for the North Londoners.

Moreover, while the former Chelsea ace did manage to score eight goals in 18 starts as a striker, that still gives him an average of a goal every 2.25 games, while the 25 goals his potential replacement scored in 38 starts means he averaged one every 1.52 games.

Lastly, when looking at their underlying numbers as a striker, it is once again a clear victory for the “magnificent” man in black and white, as described by talent scout Jacek Kulig.

While he provides fewer assists, he produces a higher non-penalty expected goal and assists figure, scores more non-penalty goals, takes more shots, more shots on target and scores from a higher number of his shots both on and off target, all per 90.

Ultimately, while Havertz put in an impressive shift toward the end of the season, he just isn’t as clinical a goalscorer as Isak is, and if Arsenal want to make sure they finally get their hands on the title next season, a clinical striker is of paramount importance.

If they can get this deal over the line, they might just have to thank United.