Mirror Football brings you the latest news involving Arsenal ahead of this weekend’s Premier League action
Arsenal will turn their attention back to the Premier League with a must-win fixture at home against Sunderland on Saturday afternoon. Mikel Arteta’s side have responded well to the 3-2 home defeat to Manchester United in late January with a 4-0 victory over Leeds United and a midweek Carabao Cup semi-final triumph over Chelsea.
They have the chance to extend their lead over Manchester City, who face a daunting trip to Anfield on Sunday, although Aston Villa in third could temporarily leapfrog the City when they face Bournemouth, also at 3pm on Saturday. A victory over Regis Le Bris’ side will solidify Arsenal’s standing as title favourites, having also topped the Champions League league phase table and now reached the League Cup final, where they will meet City.
That’s despite the north Londoners not making any significant signings in the January transfer window, following a big summer of spending. Now, Mirror Football takes a look at two of the biggest news stories from N5.
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Gyokeres ‘not trusted’
Arsenal legend Paul Merson believes Viktor Gyokeres’ Arsenal team-mates don’t trust the striker enough with the ball. Despite scoring 11 goals in all competitions since his £64million move last summer, the Swede has failed to hit form for the Gunners this season.
Aside from his long stretches without goals in the league, a lot of Gyokeres’ work on the ball has left plenty to be desired, with the former Sporting CP star going through long periods of matches not touching the ball. As such, Sky Sports pundit Merson expressed his concerns over Gyokeres’ team-mates perhaps being reluctant to give him the ball under pressure.
READ MORE: Arsenal’s transfer offer for Bundesliga star emerges after Mikel Merino injury blowREAD MORE: Robin van Persie tipped for Man Utd job as Sir Jim Ratcliffe weighs up options
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, Merson said: “I watch Gyokeres, Arsenal don’t trust him, the players. They never pass to him, you watch him, next time he comes short they go, ‘No’.”
Merson compared the service Gyokeres receives from the Arsenal players to his fellow forward Gabriel Jesus, saying: “If you watch it, you’d be surprised, then when [Gabriel] Jesus comes on, they [Arsenal players] keep on giving it to him all the time.
“That’s what I see from when I watch the game, he [Gyokeres] comes short and they never give him it. He makes some good runs as well. He’s low [on confidence] at the moment but I don’t think they trust him at all.”
Goretzka rejects Arsenal
The Gunners reportedly had a late bid to sign Leon Goretzka rejected by the Bayern Munich midfielder towards the end of transfer deadline day. The 31-year-old Germany international’s contract at the Allianz Arena expires at the end of this season following an eight-year spell with the Bundesliga champions.
But while Goretzka is eyeing a fresh challenge next season, German outlet BILD claims he did not want to leave in the middle of the campaign and intends to see out the remainder of his deal before deciding where he would like to move. It is believed that the likes of AC Milan, Napoli, Juventus and Atletico Madrid are all interested in securing his signature.
Arsenal were interested in signing a new central midfielder towards the end of the window after Mikel Merino suffered a long-term injury. The 29-year-old has been absent following a stress fracture in his foot sustained in the 3-2 defeat to Manchester United.
