Arsenal will be eager to pick up from where they left off when they return to action next weekend. The Gunners will lock horns with West Ham at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday as the Premier League title race builds a head of steam.
Mikel Arteta's side are now just four points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand. The Reds have established a cushion at the top of the table, but they're set to face Manchester City soon.
The reigning English champions have struggled this season, but they looked back to their best when they put four past Newcastle United on Saturday. So, with that being said, football.london has rounded up all the latest Arsenal news and transfer gossip.
Arsenal eye Man United target
According to CaughtOffside, Arsenal have joined Manchester United in the race to sign Mateo Retegui from Atalanta. The report claims the Gunners have already made contact with the Italian outfit over a potential deal for the 25-year-old striker, who currently leads the race for the Serie A golden boot with 20 goals.
It's said that Juventus, Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa also interested in Retegui. CaughtOffside add that Atalanta could demand €60m (£50m) for the Italy international's signature – which is a fraction of what the likes of Alexander Isak, Benjamin Sesko, Victor Osimhen and Viktor Gyokeres could go for in the summer.
football.london says: "Mateo Retegui leads the race for the Serie A golden boot with 20 goals! That's more than the likes of Moise Kean, Marcus Thauram, Romelu Lukaku, Lautaro Martinez and Dusan Vlahovic . The Italian has enjoyed a brilliant season and he could be a real coup in the summer. He'd certainly be an upgrade on Kai Havertz, that's for sure..."
Saliba names the 'best striker in the world'
William Saliba has described Mikel Merino as the 'best striker in the world'. After Arsenal's clash against Leicester City, the Spaniard marked his heroics with a celebratory post on Instagram - which he brilliant captioned: "'Number 9' day at work'..."
Declan Rice, Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly flooded Merino's comments section, but one message from Saliba stood out. Under his post, the 23-year-old defender wrote: "Best striker in the world [love heart eyes emoji]."
football.london says: "Maybe Mikel Merino is the answer to all of Mikel Arteta's prayers! No but seriously, he did a good job – albeit against Leicester City. It'll be interesting to see how Arsenal get on when they're up against stronger opposition."
Arsenal star likened to Messi!
Joe Cole compared Ethan Nwaneri to Lionel Messi following Arsenal's 2-0 win over Leicester City. Speaking on TNT Sports after the game, the Chelsea icon said: "You can't mark him because he can go both ways. These little touches he produces in and around the box, I don't even want to say it but it's like Messi. I've said it.
"I'm not trying to put any more pressure on the kid's shoulders, even though I'm sure he'd deal with it, but the touches he makes as he receives the ball off the back foot, entices the defender and the touch off the top of the toe to put them off balance... He plays with such confidence and he's a beautiful player. Arsenal and Mikel Arteta have to protect him."
football.london says: "That's a bold take from Joe Cole. Ethan Nwaneri is a super player with bags of potential. It'll be interesting to see how he grows into a greater role with more responsibility in the future. Arsenal could have a really strong core of academy graduate for years to come."
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Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Jesus with the Arsenal Therapy Dog Win during the Arsenal Men's team group shoot at London Colney on September 18, 2023
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