Arsenal are champions and favourites to retain the title. They are guided by an exceptional, single-minded manager in Mikel Arteta and armed with a deep squad crammed with talent.
But they are also the club of Ted Drake, John Radford and Charlie George, of Frank Stapleton and Alan Smith, of Ian Wright, Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp, and of Robin van Persie, so the live debate about their continued issue at No.9 carries the weight of history. Viktor Gyokeres scored 14 times as Arsenal won the title but is now second choice to Kai Havertz and has yet to start a Premier League game for the champions this season.
The question at Arsenal about whether the centre-forward role should be filled by Havertz or Gyokeres is met by some fans who say the answer is actually Mikel Merino. It highlights Arsenal’s failure to address the No.9 hole that the debate remains so intense, even with 10 wins and one defeat this season.
The debate intensifies this week when Arsenal run into Harry Kane at the Allianz Arena. The centre-forward has scored 15 goals in 22 games against Arsenal: 14 in the Premier League for Tottenham Hotspur and one in the Champions League for Bayern Munich. Imagine if Arsenal had held on to Kane, and not released him when he was briefly there as an eight-year-old.
Arsenal's struggles to find a suitable No.9 have gone on a while. They seemed to put all their hopes into luring Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid when his heart was set on Barcelona.
In fairness to Arsenal, there is a general dearth of viable, elite-level strikers out there. Manchester City do have Erling Haaland, Liverpool have Alexander Isak and Chelsea have Joao Pedro, but otherwise not many No.9s are at work in the Premier League. Leeds United have Dominic Calvert-Lewin, but the general level is almost embodied by Liam Delap, who worked hard against Arsenal’s defence at the City Ground on Sunday without scoring.
Arteta sounded confident of going into the season with goals provided from a range of sources. 10 different players have shared 22 goals this season. Starting with the Community Shield, the sequence of scorers runs: Calafiori, Havertz, Odegaard, Havertz, Saka, Odegaard, Saka, Havertz, Odegaard, Odegaard, Bruno, Saka, Dowman, Madueke, Dowman, Merino, Calafiori, Bruno, Timber, Eze, Saka and Madueke.
Arteta can also take encouragement from the number of goals scored by subs: Madueke’s winner at Nottingham Forest was the 26th coming from subs in the 45 games since the start of last season. That reflects opponents tiring as well as the quality of options Arteta has to call upon.
Life would clearly be easier with a prolific front man. Havertz fits better with what Arteta wants, holding the ball up well, linking play well, but is hardly free-scoring and has a troubling injury record. Havertz’s most productive Premier League season for Arsenal was his first there, 2023/24, when he scored 13 times in 30 starts and seven subs. The following year, the German attacker contributed nine goals and three assists in 21 starts and two sub appearances. His return in the title season was a modest two goals and three assists in seven starts and five subs.
Even with that record, Havertz is Arteta’s first-choice No.9. It seems tough on Gyokeres, a different type of forward, more focused on running behind a defence hoping for a through ball, which rarely comes. Gyokeres has a decent goal return with Sweden (25 in 41), even better than Isak’s 19 in 63.
Part of his problem at Arsenal flows from a lack of service. It would help if Arsenal unleashed counter-attacks quicker, rather than rotate the ball, and occasionally go through the middle rather than their fixation with wide. Forest’s compact block confounded Arsenal for so long. Bruno Guimaraes’ passing ability over range should be utilised more, releasing players through the middle.
It’s hard not to feel some sympathy for Gyokeres. Any understandable frustration he may feel is well-hidden. He came on against Forest and delivered his usual tireless running, pressing and showing for a ball which too rarely came. He needs to shoot more. He also deserves praise for constantly running into promising positions. When Madueke cut in from the left, Gyokeres moved into Forest’s six-yard box, gambling on a loose ball. He lurked close to Matz Sels in case the keeper got to Madueke’s shot, fumbled or parried it. As Madueke’s deflected strike hit the back of the net, and rebounded out, Gyokeres slammed it back in. Instinct, celebration or wishful thinking? At least he was there.
Is Merino the answer? The midfielder and occasional No.9 has 16 goals in 88 games for Arsenal. Arteta is likely to continue with Havertz as his first choice. The conundrum continues, placing pressure on others for goals and on that vaunted defence to keep staying defiant.
