Ray Parlour, a former player for Arsenal, believes that his former team should try to recruit Brentford attacker Ivan Toney rather than Chelsea forward Kai Havertz.
The German international struggled to live up to expectations after joining Chelsea in 2020 for a transfer price that could reach £71 million with add-ons from Bayer Leverkusen.
Havertz only managed to score seven goals in the Premier League while serving as a substitute striker for the majority of the 2022–23 season.
Chelsea struggled to score goals in 2022–23, scoring just 38 goals in the Premier League. While Arsenal pushed Man City for the title, they came in at a disappointing 12th place.
Havertz and Declan Rice of West Ham are two players Arsenal is reportedly chasing as one of their key summer ambitions.
Since Havertz’s contract isn’t up until 2025, Chelsea is refusing to pay more than £70 million. This week, it was stated that Arsenal will only spend £60 million to acquire the attacker.
For Arsenal, Havertz “is not the right signing,” according to Parlour, as they need a “out-and-out goalscorer.” Despite serving a suspension until January 2024, he believes Toney would be a better choice because of his 20 league goals for Brentford in the 22–23 season.
If you’re Arsenal, you need an obvious goalscorer, Parlour said on talkSPORT. They have excellent support play behind the striker, but they still require a goal scorer.
“For me, that’s not the correct signing, but it’s obvious that Edu and Mikel Arteta will be discussing it behind the scenes and considering whether he can play somewhere. There could be a strategy for him.
“You have to give each player a chance who joins a club. Ivan Toney would have been the obvious choice for me, but it’s a shame because he obviously has that restriction and they may not want to take a chance with that.
