Arsenal striker target Gustavo Varela continued his fine start to the season with Monza by scoring against Napoli in Serie A last night.
The Portuguese joined the promoted outfit from Benfica last summer and has been a revelation.
Varela has already netted 10 goals alongside one assist in just nine appearances, and he was brilliant against Napoli despite the heavy defeat.
The 21-year-old bagged the equaliser before half-time against Massimiliano Allegri’s side, but Monza went on to lose 4-1 at the U-Power Stadium.
Still, Varela delivered another promising display. In addition to his goal, he had six scoring attempts.
The young marksman also won six ground and aerial duels with two recoveries, and certainly made his presence felt upfront against the Naples side.
Varela signed for Monza as a relatively unknown from Benfica after a season-long loan at Gil Vicente, where he managed just 10 goal contributions.
He has already surpassed that tally with Monza in Italy. Napoli are known to be firm admirers of the player and are weighing up a possible approach.
However, Tuttomercatoweb have also reported that the Premier League are already making moves for the striker with ‘Arsenal above all’ in the pursuit.
The Gunners have two quality strikers in Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres in their ranks, but both of them have largely misfired in the current season.
Havertz, in particular, was dreadful against Fleetwood Town recently. The German squandered big chance after chance as the Gunners paid the price.
Arsenal eventually bowed out of the Carabao Cup fourth round on penalties. Poor finishing was evident in the game, with six big chances squandered.
We are still not convinced Varela is the answer to Arsenal’s problems in the striking department. He is still relatively untested at the highest level, barring this season.
It is a very small sample size to consider for a winter move, but if he keeps on scoring goals until January, Arsenal may well compete with Napoli for his services.
Monza signed Varela for just £2 million from Benfica last summer. The Portuguese giants have a 20 percent sell-on clause and matching rights for the young striker.
The Serie A outfit could capitalise on his fine scoring form to secure a huge profit. A £30m valuation won’t come as a surprise during the winter transfer window.
A deal may ultimately depend on where they lie in the table. Monza are two points ahead of the drop zone. If the gap widens to double figures, they could entertain a mid-season exit.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com & Sofascore.com