SOL CAMPBELL claims Viktor Gyokeres’ arrival might not be enough to turn Arsenal into champions.
The Gunners legend, 50, says his former club “need TWO strikers” to turn them into top dogs.
GettyArsenal have been working on bringing in striker Viktor Gyokeres for weeks[/caption]
GettyArsenal legend Sol Campbell thinks his arrival still might not be enough[/caption]
Ex-England defender Campbell won the title twice for the North London club and was part of the Invincibles squad – the last Arsenal team to lift the Premier League trophy.
Arteta won the FA Cup in his first season in charge five years ago and has led them to runners-up spot in the top-flight for three consecutive seasons.
Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke and Christian Norgaard are already on board and Gyokeres looks set to join and finally fill the striker void.
Many believe this could be Arteta’s year – though Campbell, speaking exclusively to The Sun via betting site BetSelect, insists they still need more firepower to go with the ex-Coventry hotshot.
He said: “You need two strikers to trouble other teams. You can’t always rely on just one striker as if he gets injured, the team’s performance drops.
“So it’s important to have a main one and have another really good backup. Sometimes they can play together, sometimes one’s on the bench and the other comes on. It can be good to get a slightly older one who’s been there, seen it, and done it, and can come on when you need something to happen for 20 minutes, but they’re top, top quality.
“If you pick the second striker properly, they can come on to make a difference. That’s something you have to do. So if they do get two strikers, they could definitely become champions.
“That’s the type of player who has been missing, somebody who has scored 20-25 goals just in the league. It’s okay to say, ‘he’s got all of these goals in all of these competitions,’ but that’s not good enough; that’s not going to win you the Premier League. You need goals to get you over the line and make up point differences.”
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Campbell also backed Arteta to eventually “get his moment” and lead the Gunners back to glory.
He said: “Deep down, the players want to win for him. He’s desperate to win something. He’s doing everything in his power to get that right mentality and that right set of players. He’s probably thinking now, ‘we’ve got one chance to do it’. This is the year he’ll feel like he’s got the right materials and the right players.
“He’ll get his moment, but when those moments come, he needs the players on the pitch to do the job, whether that’s a big save or a big goal in a big game.
“Arteta wants to win something. He knows this team needs to win something. If you get the right centre forward and get everything clicking together, Arsenal have a great chance.
“Every time a player is on the pitch, he has to play his best. You have to be up for it, and he’s getting that team together. He’s doing the right things and creating the right environment to win.”
Campbell is also delighted to see Arsenal getting their transfer business done early.
If they do get two strikers, they could definitely become champions.
Sol Campbell
He added: “It’s so important to get the players that you want in. They get a good pre-season and a good month to settle in, and you really start to form that mentality.
“That’s when you begin to think – we’ve got a good squad here, we’ve got a chance, if you give us the chance, we’re going to take it.
“If you’ve got the right mentality and the right chemistry in the team, they will keep going and want to win.
“The truth is, if you haven’t won anything, it’s going to be hard to win your first one. Really hard. If you haven’t won it, how do you build that confidence to win? Sometimes you need winners. Sometimes you might need to buy a couple of winners. Even a player who’s won something in another country. They know what it takes to be a winner.”
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