When it comes to the biggest stars of Arsenal's Emirates era, one name will come to mind for most: Mesut Özil.
The German international joined the Gunners in a shock £42.4m move from Real Madrid on transfer deadline day 2013, in a moment that every fan who was around at the time will still remember as if it was yesterday.
The mercurial midfielder might have left the club under a bit of cloud, but for most of his time in the capital, he was simply superb and managed to rack up a tally of 44 goals and 77 assists in 254 appearances.
Mesut-Ozil-Arsenal-stats (timeless)
So, fans should be excited about recent reports linking the club to another international superstar who could have a similar impact to Ozil in North London.
Arsenal transfer news
Before getting to the player in question, it's worth looking at some of the other stars linked with Arsenal who could be game-changing acquisitions, like Viktor Gyokeres and Morgan Rogers.
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The former could reportedly cost around £63m, and it's not hard to see how he could change the Gunners' fortunes next year, as in just 50 appearances this season, he's scored 52 goals and provided 13 assists.
Likewise, with 14 goals and 14 assists in 52 appearances for Aston Villa this season, Rogers looks like he'd be more than worth the £100m price tag reportedly on his head.
Aston Villa star Morgan Rogers
However, there is another superstar attacker whose impact on the North Londoners could more closely mirror Ozil's: Rodrygo.
Yes, according to a recent report from journalist Ben Jacobs, Real Madrid are "willing to let Rodrygo go" this summer, and this has put Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool on alert, with them all regarding this as a real "market opportunity."
However, just because he's available to sign doesn't mean it'll be a cheap transfer to get over the line, with reports from earlier this week claiming that he could cost £85m.
It's safe to say this is a deal that may well have legs. Even the Athletic have joined in on the party, suggesting Arteta is a huge fan of the tricky winger.
With all that said, Arsenal should still do all they can to sign Rodrygo this summer, as he'd add so much to their attack and could have a similar impact to Ozil all those years ago.
Rodrygo's similarities to Ozil
Okay, so we aren't saying that Rodrgyo is even remotely similar to Ozil as a player in his playstyle, but were this deal to go through this summer, then it would be undeniably reminiscent of the German's 12 years ago.
rodrygo-real-madrid
For example, when the midfield maestro moved to the Emirates in 2013, it was the biggest statement that the Gunners had made in the market for a very long time, and should they secure the Brazilian in the coming months, you'd be able to say the same thing.
Secondly, it would be another case of the North Londoners taking advantage of Real moving on one of their biggest superstars, and at the same age as well, with the World Cup winner being just 24 when he left the Bernabeu.
Finally, and this is important, the Osasco-born dynamo has the raw talent and ability to go on and be just as influential as Ozil was during his time at the Emirates.
For example, since the start of last season, the "world-class superstar," as dubbed by Luka Modrić, has scored 31 goals and provided 19 assists in 102 appearances, totalling 7,067 minutes.
Rodrygo's recent record
Season
Appearances
Minutes
Goals
Assists
Goal Involvements per Match
Minutes per Goal Involvement
All Stats via Transfermarkt
That means the 24-year-old has maintained an impressive average of a goal involvement every 2.04 games, or every 141.34 minutes across two years of football at the very highest level.
Finally, the “big game player” as Dougie Critchley described him, also knows how to get himself and his team across the finishing line in the biggest competitions, and as such, has won two Champions Leagues, three La Ligas, the Club World Cup, the Copa del Rey and others.
FFC in-text wider Rodrygo (1)
Ultimately, Rodrygo is one of the very best wingers in world football, and if Arsenal can secure his services this summer, he'd be following in Ozil's footsteps and could go on to be just as influential in North London as the German was.
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