Arsenal dropped more points in their quest to close the gap on Liverpool, with Sunday's 1-1 draw at Manchester United leaving Mikel Arteta's side 15 points behind the Premier League leaders.
It took a Declan Rice goal to salvage a point at Old Trafford, as Arsenal's depleted attack once again struggled. After the match, Premier League pundits Ian Wright and Owen Hargreaves insisted the Gunners' priority in the summer transfer market must be a new striker if they want to win trophies.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
29 | +42 | 70 |
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
28 | +28 | 55 |
Wright: We're lacking forwards
"I think we'd be a lot closer to Liverpool if we'd had that striker who could take those chances, in the moments where Arsenal needed one - like we needed today in the first half," said former Arsenal striker Wright.
"When you look at the possession in the first half and the chances created, a forward who's in there for that particular reason, to try and get on the end of things, is what you miss.
"We have to start thinking about the summer because you watch a game like that again and you just feel like it's just something missing - options up front."
'You can go and win everything'
Former Manchester United midfielder Hargreaves compared Liverpool's striking options with Arsenal's, highlighting the difficulties the latter face without Bukayo Saka, who has been sidelined since December.
The Gunners have scored just three times in their last four league matches, winning only once at struggling Leicester City last month.
"Look at what Liverpool have, look at the different options. They've got Mo Salah, [Diogo] Jota, [Cody] Gakpo, [Luis] Diaz, [Darwin] Nunez, there are five or six of them," said Hargreaves.
"At Arsenal, if Saka's out, and he's been absolutely amazing for them, is [Gabriel] Martinelli going to get the goals? I know a couple of seasons ago he got 15, which is great. But again, those goals have dried up. [Kai] Havertz is a great player but he's not a No 9. So you're relying on players to do what isn't their expertise.
"Go and get someone whose job it is to score goals. You've got everything else - a great goalkeeper, best defence in the league, the midfield is absolutely fantastic, you just need another one in there with Declan [Rice] and [Martin] Odegaard.
"Go and get a striker and a centre midfielder. Then you can win everything."
Arsenal's remaining 2024/25 Premier League fixtures
| Date | Arsenal |
| 16 March | Chelsea (H) |
|---|---|
| 1/2 April | Fulham (H) |
| 5 April | Everton (A) |
| 12 April | Brentford (H) |
| 19 April | Ipswich (A) |
| 26 April | Crystal Palace (H) |
| 3 May | Bournemouth (H) |
| 10 May | Liverpool (A) |
| 18 May | Newcastle (H) |
| 25 May | Southampton (A) |
