Arda Guler loan move, Raphinha deal, Victor Gyokeres transfer”, Arsenal squad list once the January transfer is completed – as Arteta set to do clearance of the second part of the Season in other to win league
Arda Guler loan move, Raphinha deal, Victor Gyokeres transfer”, Arsenal squad list once the January transfer is completed – as Arteta set to do clearance of the second part of the Season in other to win league
Arsenal suffered in the absence of Martin Odegaard during his injury. His return to the field against Chelsea showcased exactly what the Gunners had been missing with his assist for Gabriel Martinelli providing tangible evidence.
His pass in the build-up to the chance in the final seconds only furthered the point. Odegaard has returned to Arsenal after it was decided he should not play with Norway during the international break and the fear of another setback was clearly enough to make the call.
It is clear that Arsenal need to find players who can help subsidise the creative void that appears when either Odegaard isn’t available or perhaps he is not as impactful in a game. Bukayo Saka certainly does this to a degree on the right but in both deputising options to Odegaard and on the left, so far it has been lacking.
With that in mind, football.london looks at the data to find three of Europe’s highest-performing creators this season. Looking at goal and shot-creating actions, these three stand out.
Ademola Lookman
The first is a player who was linked to Arsenal in the the summer window, Ademola Lookman. The Nigerian international has already faced the Gunners and was a threat as Atalanta missed a penalty to see out a 0-0 draw in Bergamo.
Lookman has continued to impress after yet another high-scoring campaign in 2023/24. He has eight goals and five assists in 14 games – no one in the Arsenal team comes close to 13 goal contributions during this season, Saka is the highest with 11 (four goals and seven assists).
Lookman has played predominantly on the left and as a second striker. He is versatile and can even play as a centre-forward too and could off Mikel Arteta something of a deputy option through the middle when there is need to rotate the striker.
Lastly, Lookman ranks fourth on FBRef’s rankings for shot-creating-actions per 90 (SCA90) in Europe’s top five leagues – 8.04. Quite the number and perhaps exactly what Arsenal need.
Alex Baena
Another of Spain’s up-and-coming class of talent although now 23, Alex Baena is stepping into his mid-20s with more expectation on his shoulders. He has become a star for Villarreal and now fully-fledged Spain senior international, impressive in his seven caps and scoring twice.
He has five assists so far this season and ranks 10th on FBRef’s SCA90 list for Europe’s top five leagues so far this season. Certainly more unknown perhaps to a wider audience, there would be a fear that Arsenal would be signing another Fabio Vieira type but this is the challenge when it comes to finding the right stars.
Again, like Lookman, he predominantly plays on the left but can operate centrally. It would be a riskier move but the marquee desires simply are not around in the winter window to consider at the same degree.
Rayan Cherki
Lastly is a player that perhaps readers will be more aware of and that is Lyon’s Rayan Cherki. He might only have two goals and three assists so far this season, but perhaps should have far more.
He ranks second on the list of FBRef’s SCA90 rankings with 8.45. At 21, he is the youngest on the list here too with plenty of development still to go.
Unlike Lookman and Baena, he is either a central figure or skewed to the right-hand side. Without a defined strong foot, he also has the ability to invert and run to the touchline for cut-back passes.
