Arsenal aim to beat Chelsea to Loic Remy

Arsenal have reportedly made a last-ditch attempt to complete a deal for Queens Park Rangers striker Loic Remy, according to reports in the Telegraph.

The French international, who scored an impressive 14 goals in 26 games on loan at Newcastle last season, has attracted interest from the Gunners for some time now. The striker has also been particularly interested in a move to the North London side in the past and was even spotted at one of their games at the tail end of last season.

The report states that the Gunners have made a dramatic last-minute intervention to try and hijack Chelsea’s bid to sign Remy by also triggering the £10.5 million buy-out clause in the striker’s contract at Queen’s Park Rangers. Chelsea remained extremely confident last night that the Emirates side have left it far too late and the Frenchman would still decide to join Jose Mourinho’s side.

Harry Redknapp confirmed after QPR’s 1-0 win over Sunderland that Remy was joining Chelsea after the Blues had activated his £10.5 million release clause. However with Arsenal also doing the same, the striker has a choice to make of which London giant to join. Both the clubs offer Champions League football, but the Gunners may offer better first team opportunities with Olivier Giroud out until the New Year.

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Key Stats:

Despite playing nearly eleven games less, Remy scored just two league goals under Giroud. The QPR man is averaging a goal every 1.8 games, while the Gunners striker averaged a goal every 2.25 games. There is also a major difference in their finishing stats, as Giroud had a conversion rate of a mere 18.2% last season, whereas his international teammate finished with a superior rate of 21.5%.

Style of Play:

The French striker has superb acceleration, likes to make runs off the shoulders of defenders and his pace means he finds himself in a lot of one-on-one situations with the opposing goalkeeper. It will mean that players like Santi Cazorla and Mesut Ozil will have another runner to target. He’s not bad in the air too, as quite a few of the goals he scores are with his head while he can play anywhere across the front three.

Should we Buy?

He is available for just £10.5 million, a steal for a player who proved last season he can score goals in the Premier League. Remy scored 14 times in 26 appearances for Newcastle last season in a side that lacked firepower and often lacked creativity, which demonstrates what a solid return this was for the French forward.

He is also a more direct option than Giroud, given his pace and dribbling ability and can take players on and get in behind opposition back lines. He can offer Arsenal’s creative midfielders another dimension and could benefit the team as a whole. However, he reportedly failed a medical at Liverpool underlining the fitness issues and whether he can step up from Newcastle is another issue.

The Gunners problem is that they lack a top level forward and although he is good but he is’t Diego Costa or Sergio Aguero. However, with the transfer window closing in a day its better we sign Remy instead of having to rely on the inexperience of Sanogo and Campbell. Not our first choice option but certainly better than no one.

Rumour Rater : 3/5

1 – Never going to happen
2 – Unlikely
3 – Could be possible
4 – Likely
5 – Done deal

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