Arsenal Q&A: Is Martinelli the answer?
- Published
Throughout Wednesday, BBC Sport's football news reporter Alex Howell is answering your questions on Arsenal.
In the first part, he takes a look at the season-defining question of what has happened up front this year.
Adam asked: Could Gabriel Martinelli now be an option as a forward in upcoming fixtures, having played in that position before?
Alex: This is an interesting question, especially now Martinelli is fit again. Realistically, the Premier League is gone but Martinelli up front in the Champions League could be a serious option.
Mikel Arteta has opted for Mikel Merino in that position but Martinelli's pace, away at the Bernabeu where Real Madrid will put Arsenal under a lot of pressure, could be a great fit.
Getting something from that game is key and Martinelli's ability to run in behind could work.
In the Premier League, Arsenal mostly come up against teams that sit in against them in a low block so operating from the sides suits Martinelli better in those situations.
JD asked: Why were Aston Villa capable of making two January signings that have made a huge impact on their goal tally when Arsenal seemed to claim no one was available?
Alex: I don't think Arsenal were not able to get anyone - it was more of a case that they did not want to sign someone that would not improve them immediately and impact their plans for the summer.
The need to sign a striker was made worse by the injury to Gabriel Jesus and it is clear that they should have signed one forward, but finding a player who hit the two criteria above was tricky.
The Ollie Watkins deal was one that was talked about around the time Jhon Duran left Villa, but the amount of money needed would have had an impact on future transfer plans.
I do think, though, that doing it this way puts a lot of pressure on the summer transfer window and fans are going to be expecting exciting signings.
Come back to this page later on Wednesday for more of your questions