• Transfer News

Wenger eyes short-term striker fix

ESPN staff
January 8, 2014
ESPN FC: Who should Wenger buy?

Arsene Wenger has ordered Arsenal's scouts to come up with a short-term fix for the club's attacking problems, with Real Madrid's Alvaro Morata the No.1 target.

The Premier League leaders will be without Theo Walcott for the rest of the season after the England forward suffered cruciate knee ligament damage in the FA Cup victory over Tottenham on Saturday.

Week in Pictures

Theo Walcott in wind-up mode © Getty Images
  • Theo Walcott gets short-changed, Jose Mourinho is not a fan of the British weather and a jockey gets a face full of mud - here are some of our favourite sporting images from the past week.
  • Click here to view Week in Pictures

Nicklas Bendtner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lukas Podolski and Mesut Ozil have also spent various lengths of time on the sidelines this season, while Olivier Giroud has admitted to suffering from fatigue after being used in almost every game.

And the Guardian claims Arsenal's management and scouting staff have discussed the possibility of bringing in reinforcements.

The club has, according to the paper, accepted that they will struggle to secure any of their primary targets before the summer, meaning a short-term solution is far more likely - with 21-year-old Morata fitting the bill.

For long-term solutions, Atletico Madrid's Diego Costa, Porto's Jackson Martinez and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema are all on Wenger's radar, as well as Bayern Munich forward Mario Mandzukic, whose position at the German champions is under scrutiny with the imminent arrival of Robert Lewandowski from Borussia Dortmund.

Closer to home, Wenger has also been keeping tabs on Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko.

Download ESPN's new UK sport app, a fresh and powerful new way to follow your favourite UK sports news, scores and video.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd
ESPN staff Close