Is Alexander Isak’s work-rate enough for Arsenal? Ex-Gunners midfielder urges club to ignore fellow Swede as he names two ‘killers’ club should ‘break the bank’ for instead of £150m-rated Newcastle star

The general consensus for some time has been that the Gunners need to find another proven No.9. A supposed lack of firepower in Mikel Arteta’s squad is considered to be responsible for three successive Premier League title bids falling flat.

There has been talk of a raid being launched on domestic rivals Newcastle for Isak, who could come with a £150 million ($194m) price tag. Anders Limpar is not convinced that his fellow Swede is the right option to be drafted in at Emirates Stadium.

Speaking in association with a bookmaker online, ex-Gunners midfielder Limpar told GOAL when asked if Isak is the right fit for Arsenal: “I think we are complete as a team, from the goalkeeper to the defending, midfielders, creative players, but we don’t have a striker. We don’t have a killer at the moment.

“To buy Isak, that’s going to cost us, for sure. He’s an unbelievable player, an unbelievable good goalscorer, and he’s skilled as a footballer. But I would rather say that we need a player like Ollie Watkins or the other Swede, Viktor Gyokeres, because we will probably get more out of them when it comes to work rate.

“I love to see Alex play football, but at the moment we don’t need a player like him. We need more like a killer, like Gyokeres, [or] an unbelievable all-rounder like Ollie Watkins. Alex is among the best at the moment but in the long run, over a period of two or three years, I would rather pick the other two players.”

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Any deals for Aston Villa frontman Watkins or Sporting sensation Gyokeres would not come cheap either, with Limpar adding when quizzed on whether Arsenal are prepared to invest another nine-figure sum on a fearsome forward: “It is hard to tell. From the outside looking in, the whole team is there. The Premier League is up for grabs, the Champions League, so why shouldn’t we splash out a he amount of money on an unbelievable striker, because the rest is there.

“We have been unfortunate, unlucky, with [Gabriel] Jesus and now [Kai] Havertz. They are all killers in the penalty box. At the moment, we should break the bank for those two I mentioned.”

Arsenal have slipped 15 points off the title-chasing pace being set by Liverpool this season, but remain in the hunt for a top-four finish and possible Champions League glory. Injuries have hindered Arteta’s cause, with Bukayo Saka another attacking option that has missed a lot of football, but the option is there to splash the cash and find much-needed reinforcements during the summer of 2025.