Arsenal kickstarted their Premier League campaign in brilliant fashion this season and appear to have simply picked up where they left off last year.
Mikel Arteta's side calmly dispatched Wolverhampton Wanderers at home in their opening game, and they managed to right the wrongs of last season by coming away from Villa Park with all three points over the weekend.
The North Londoners' attacking stars have been in fine form as well, with Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka picking up a goal and an assist in the first game, while the Englishman also provided an assist for Thomas Partey's goal against the Villans.
However, despite starting both matches, Gabriel Martinelli still looks way off the incredible form he showed two seasons ago, and if he doesn't improve soon, he's in real danger of permanently losing his place in the lineup to Leandro Trossard.
The good news for the Brazilian is that the club have been linked with a last-minute move for an incredible goalscorer who could revive his form and get him back to his very best.
Arsenal transfer news
According to a recent report from Football Insider, Arsenal have reignited their interest in Brentford star Ivan Toney.
The report claims that after waiting in the wings and agreeing on the sale of Eddie Nketiah, the Gunners are now planning to make a 'shock late move' for the talented striker.
A potential price is not mentioned in the story, but reports from earlier this week revealed that the Englishman may end up leaving the Bees for around £40m due to how late in the window it is, although there is a chance that this new interest from the North Londoners could cause a short bidding war with Chelsea and Al-Ahli.
While it could be costly, bringing Toney to the Emirates would be an excellent idea. At his best, the 28-year-old is one of the best strikers in the league, and he could even help players like Martinelli get back to his best.
Why Toney could revive Martinelli
So, to get straight to the point, there is one primary reason that Toney could help Martinelli get back to his electrifying best at Arsenal: his output.
If you discard last season due to the Brentford ace missing most of it through his betting-related football ban, he is undeniably one of the best goalscorers in the entire Premier League.
For example, in his first top-flight campaign following promotion with the club, he scored 12 goals and provided five assists in just 33 league appearances. Then, in his second season, he exploded, scoring 20 goals and providing four assists in just 33 league appearances.
Appearances
33
33
17
Goals
12
20
4
Assists
5
4
2
Goal Involvements per Match
0.51
0.72
0.35
That means that in his first two Premier League seasons with the Bees, the "unplayable" centre-forward, as dubbed by Alan Shearer, averaged a goal involvement every 1.94 and 1.37 games, respectively.
Just imagine a marksman as clinical as this playing alongside the Gunners' number 11. He'd see so many more of his chances end up in the back of the net, and we can be confident in that as, according to Understat, he underperformed his expected assist in the league last season by 1.32 and by a massive 4.35 the season prior, meaning he has no problem in creating opportunities.
Moreover, if the Brazilian saw his assist tally improving with the former Newcastle United ace in the team, his confidence would naturally improve as well, and that can only do him good in the long run.
Ultimately, Arsenal are running out of time to improve their attack this summer, and while some may see Toney as a panic buy, he is an incredibly talented striker who should bring a mountain of goals with him to North London, which should, in turn, help Martinelli get back to his best. Therefore, Edu and Co should do what they can to get this deal over the line before someone else does.
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