The Ligue 1 star made 17 goal contributions last season
Arsenal entered the 2025 summer transfer window with three major problems and they’ve so far fixed two of them thanks to the arrival of superstar frontman Viktor Gyokeres and new dynamo Martin Zubimendi, who’s not on trial for charges of rape and sexual assault and therefore at least an upgrade in character at the base of midfield, but left-wing remains a major hole.
Mosquera and potentially Jeremy Jacquet join Jakub Kiwior and potentially as formidable central defensive understudies while the Gunners’ full-back cupboard was already well-stocked, and in midfield Norgaard could be one of the most underrated signings of the summer.
It remains to be seen quite how Madueke will be deployed in red and white but he’s at least a destructive deputy to Bukayo Saka and should prevent Arsenal going through a similar slump to 2024/25 in their talisman’s absence. And while they frustrated the Emirates for much of last season in front of goal, Mikel Merino and Kai Havertz remain class operators and compare much more favourably to Arsenal’s rivals as rotation options.
However, there’s a dearth of left-wingers on the market right now especially below the world-class options of Rafael Leao and Rodrygo, who felt more realistic earlier in the summer but now seem pipe dreams at price tags at or approaching €100 million.
Maghnes Akliouche and the dynamite Takefusa Kubo - one of the best dribblers in Europe especially outside of the Champions League - both prefer the right flank while Nico Williams is staying put in the Basque Country, and from there the options quickly degrade into the likes of Jadon Sancho.
Sancho would at least be cheap, with Manchester United seemingly willing to accept a bag of crisps in return for shifting the £350,000 salary of their fourth most expensive signing of all time, but a better option would be Malick Fofana, who’s bided his time this summer but appears set to leave Lyon despite their reprieve to remain in Ligue 1.
Malick Fofana can ignite Arsenal attack
Everton had sights trained on Fofana and launched a bid of £30m but according to The Times the Belgian has his heart set on Champions League football, dramatically reducing the field. However, it’s not hard to see why David Moyes - always an insightful talent spotter - was desperate to sign Fofana despite the Toffees’ concurrent interest in Jack Grealish.
The Belgian is a monster with the ball at his feel, ranking in the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers in Europe’s top five leagues for progressive carries and similarly impressively for progressive passes received and carries into the final third. Aged 20, Fofana isn’t an assist merchant (yet) but has a remarkable eye for goal as his percentage of shots of target was higher than any other player in a similar position across the Europe’s elite leagues.
His strike rate of a goal every four shots also led the continent’s attackers and though a return of five league goals in 2024/25 doesn’t immediately scream clinical, Fofana managed that from an xG of less than four. In all competitions, the Belgian outperformed his non-penalty xG by 0.21 goals per 90 minutes, effectively meaning every five full games he’d conjure up a goal from absolutely nowhere, a number that once again puts him in the top 2% of comparable players.
Excluding spot-kicks, that makes Fofana a better finisher than Gyokeres, Erling Haaland, Chris Wood, Mohamed Salah and Alexander Isak - you name the elite attacker and they probably haven’t outperformed the quality of their service to the same degree as the Lyon star.
Lyon were demanding €60m (£51.5m) for Fofana earlier in the transfer window though given how far Everton got with their negotiations, it seems fair to say there’s some wiggle room there and beating Liverpool to his signature would cap off a perfect transfer window for Arsenal.
Malick Fofana would complete fearsome Arsenal starting XI
Even without a left-wing signing in the window, Arsenal would’ve arguably been Premier League favourites the last two seasons had they entered off the back of such a blockbuster summer where they addressed two-thirds of their major needs.
However, that was before the big six went ballistic this summer, with even Tottenham showing ambition (if not quite sticking the execution) and the Gunners will have a major battle on their hands given Liverpool’s extravagant strengthening, Pep Guardiola’s reload at Manchester City and Chelsea signing around 50% of attacking players on the market.
If they do bring in a quality left-winger then the only black mark against Arsenal’s summer would be its timing, but completing the job after such an ambitious transfer window is now a necessity rather than a luxury for Mikel Arteta, and Fofana would represent the final piece of the puzzle.
A back four and goalkeeper that was already the meanest in the Premier League last season by some margin (seven goals, which was 20% of Arsenal’s total goals against), any combination of Zubimendi, Rice, Nwaneri and Odegaard in midfield and Saka, Gyokeres and Fofana up front would be a serious proposition, and Arteta can now call on genuine depth in all areas too.
However, play Madueke out of position on the left or stick with the Martinelli and Trossard double-act and Arsenal look a lot less frightening and even potentially under-cooked against their most potent challengers. It’s a fine line, and Fofana could well be the difference.
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