Arsenal are once again looking like the team most likely to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title this season, even more so after Declan Rice's last-second header secured them a memorable comeback win over Luton Town during the week.
That win means that the Gunners go into this weekend atop the table, and they will do so while many still argue that they haven't looked anywhere near their best.
Mikel Arteta has created one of the best defensive units in the country, which has seen them move up the table, yet they have struggled to score quite as freely as they did this time last year.
However, with news that they could be set to repeat what they did with Rice and sign another team's best player in 2024, that problem could also be solved.
The player in question has been playing in a remarkably similar way to former Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and is said to be an Arsenal fan himself: Ollie Watkins.
Arsenal transfer news – Ollie Watkins
According to the Daily Mail, Ollie Watkins is a name being considered by Arteta and the board as they look to add more quality to a team desperate to end their two-decade title drought.
However, it won't be an easy deal to complete. It will likely cost the north Londoners an arm and a leg, with journalist Neil Moxley telling GIVEMESPORT: "I think you're going to be talking £75million-plus, if not a bit more because Villa would want to be able to source a replacement."
While the former Exeter City man would be an undeniably expensive acquisition at that price point, Arsenal have already shown that they are willing to spend big on the right players, smashing records to sign Rice from West Ham United in the summer for a fee of £105m.
Additionally, the "unstoppable" forward, as described by Jamie Carragher, has been in electric form this season and has even started to put in performances not too dissimilar to Aubameyang, who, as things go, isn't a bad striker to emulate.
Ollie Watkins could be Arsenal's new Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Now, as outstanding as Aubameyang was for most of his time in red and white, it's impossible to ignore how poor he was towards the end of his spell in north London and how he fared at Chelsea after that.
However, since moving to Marseille in the summer, he has started to show glimpses of the greatness Arsenal fans were so used to seeing.
He has scored ten goals and provided three assists in just 16 starts for the French side in all competitions this year, and according to FBref, he is the sixth most similar player to Watkins in Europe's top five leagues.
Number
Player
Team
1
Alvaro Morata
Atletico Madrid
2
Erling Haaland
Manchester City
3
Sebastien Haller
Borussia Dortmund
4
Dominic Solanke
Bournemouth
5
Terem Moffi
OGC Nice
6
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Marseille
Some of the other impressive names on that list include Erling Haaland, Alvaro Morata and Sebastian Haller, who are all strikers who have been delivering for their side over the last season or so.
A notable likeness that both Watkins and Aubameyang share is their ability to also link play and offer a creative spark when leading the line, with the Villa man ranking in the top 7% for assists per 90 among his European peers, while the ex-Gunners skipper is only just behind as he ranks in the top 19% in that regard.
Watkins has reached another level this year, scoring a seriously impressive eight goals and providing six assists in just 15 league appearances, and there is no reason why those numbers couldn't improve further with players like Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard around him.
At the end of the day, Arsenal require a more clinical striker if they are to win the league. While the fee might be hard to stomach, the 'sensational' Watkins, as described by BBC pundit Garth Crooks, has proven himself in England's top flight, and if he even gets close to Aubameyang's 113 goal involvements for the club, he will be worth whatever they pay for him.
