Better than Watkins: Arsenal weighing up late swoop for £70m "menace"

The transfer window is set to slam shut in under a week, and it looks like Arsenal are finally ready to do some deals.

Last night, the news broke that the Gunners had made a surprise £60m bid for Aston Villa's incredible Ollie Watkins, which was rejected by the Birmingham outfit.

As things stand, the North Londoners may go in with a second offer, but with Jhon Duran set to join Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr, it seems unlikely that the Villans will sanction his exit, even with an improved fee.

However, while that's not ideal news for Arsenal, it's not all doom and gloom; as per other reports, they are still being linked to another incredibly exciting striker who would be an even better signing than Watkins.

Arsenal chasing sensational striker

According to a recent report from Spain, Arsenal have maintained their strong interest in RB Leipzig star Benjamin Šeško and are weighing up the possibility of signing him ahead of next week's transfer deadline.

In fact, the report has revealed that the Slovenian dynamo remains one of Arteta's top three targets to strengthen in the striker position, but the Bundesliga side are currently making a deal 'difficult.'

A potential price for the 21-year-old sharpshooter is not mentioned in the story, but reports from earlier this week reiterated prior claims that he has a price tag on his head of around about £70m.

It will be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line for Arsenal this month, but given Šeško's ability and potential, it's one well worth fighting for, especially as he'd be a smarter signing than Watkins.

How Šeško compares to Watkins

With Arsenal supposedly interested in both Watkins and Šeško this month, it seems incredibly unlikely that they would be willing to spend big on both of them, especially not when Kai Havertz is also occupying the same position.

So, if the choice is one or the other, which forward should the Gunners go for? Well, if we compare their raw output from the start of last season, which is what matters most for a centre-forward, then it's much closer competition than many might think, and one that the 21-year-old just comes out on top of.

For example, in 70 games totalling 4030 minutes, the unreal Leipzig "menace," as dubbed by football scout Antonio Mango, has scored 32 goals and provided five assists, which means he's averaged a goal every 125.93 minutes and a goal involvement every 108.91 minutes since the start of last season.

Šeško vs Watkins 23/24 Šeško Watkins Appearances 42 53 Minutes 2057' 4323' Goals 18 27 Assists 2 13 Minutes per Goal 114.27' 160.11' Minutes per Goal Involvement 102.85' 108.07' 23/24 Šeško Watkins Appearances 28 32 Minutes 1973' 2234' Goals 14 11 Assists 3 9 Minutes per Goal 140.92' 203.09' Minutes per Goal Involvement 116.05' 111.70' All Stats via Transfermarkt

For his part, the former Brentford star has scored 38 goals and provided 22 assists in 85 games, totalling 6557 minutes since the start of last season, which comes out to a goal on average every 172.55 minutes and a goal involvement every 109.28 minutes.

Now, some of you may raise the very valid point that, on average, the Bundesliga is considered a slightly easier league than the Premier League, which will surely help the Radeče-born star's case.

However, on the other hand, the Conference League is a far weaker competition than the Champions League, and while the former RB Salzburg star scored two of his 18 goals in the latter last season, the Villa star scored eight of his 27 in the former.

Moreover, the fact the 6 foot 5 goalscorer is already proving himself to be slightly more productive than the former Exeter City star at just 21 is incredibly encouraging, and considering the Gunners have a team full of players on the younger side looking to grow together, he simply makes more sense as a marquee striker signing.

Ultimately, with Šeško just about edging things in terms of production, being significantly younger and being 6 inches taller, it would be the wiser move from Arsenal to sign him over Watkins this month or even in the summer.

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