According to The Evening Standard in London, Arsenal have conceded on signing Diego Costa and have now set their sights on Bayern Munich forward, Mario Mandzukic. Like Chelsea, Arsenal are looking to strengthen their striker options and Mandzukic looks to be their top priority now.
Mandzukic has been the man for Bayern Munich up top but with Bayern set to get Robert Lewandowski this summer, Mandzukic is almost certainly going to play less and less. Bayern have said they want to keep the Croatian striker but if Arsenal come in with a hefty bid, Bayern may be tempted to sell.
Arsenal only have Olivier Giroud and Yaya Sanogo at that striker position, so depth has been the problem all year for The Gunners. Giroud started the season flying high but has cooled off and Arsenal have relied on goals from the midfield for quite some time now.
The rumor is coming from The Evening Standard which is not the greatest of sources but is reliable, thus it gets a 5.
If Mandzukic did come to The Emirates, he would be an ideal signing for Arsenal. Arsenal like to play a 4-2-3-1 and Mandzukic is quite used to being a lone striker who can hold up play and link up well with midfielders.
Mandzukic has had a great season for Bayern scoring goals and he can bring that to Arsenal. If he came to Arsenal, I would give the signing a 9 out of 10 as far as strengthening the squad.
Mandzukic has been the striker for Bayern this season but with Lewandowski coming next season and the array of options at Bayern, Mandzukic may want to leave the club to get more playing time on a consistent basis. Arsenal seem hopeful they can sign the Croat and I think it’s very likely Mandzukic will leave. This all comes down to how much Arsenal are willing to splash out for a transfer fee and if Mandzukic is keen on the move, which I expect.
I give the likelihood of this transfer about a 70 percent chance. It would be higher but until Arsenal pay the hefty price tag, I will not be 100 percent certain.
