Arsenal have reportedly sent scouts to watch Atalanta BC striker Mateo Retegui in a bid to bolster their frontline in the race for the Premier League title.
Mikel Arteta's side are down in fourth, nine points behind leaders Liverpool, with almost one-third of the season played.
No team in the top six at present have scored fewer goals than Arsenal, and their attacking output has come in for some criticism this season.
Questions were raised when the Gunners lost to Bournemouth, Newcastle United and Inter Milan without scoring recently, but they have silenced those critics for now, scoring eight across two wins versus Nottingham Forest and Sporting Lisbon.
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Arsenal seeking audacious move for Retegui?
However, those impressive scorelines will not see Arsenal stand still, if reports are to be believed.
Journalist Maurizio Russo claims that Arsenal sent scouts to watch Italy international Retegui in Atalanta's 6-1 win over Young Boys in the Champions League this week.
Retegui was a summer signing for La Dea, joining in a €22m (£18.5m) transfer from Genoa, who brought him to Italian football shortly after he switched international allegiances from Argentina.
However, it is believed Arsenal could launch an audacious attempt to sign the striker just six months after his move to Bergamo, in order to strengthen their front line for the second half of the season.
Kai Havertz remains the first-choice option up front, but it has become clear that Gabriel Jesus is not highly-fancied by Arteta, and the club are seeking reinforcements in the central area in January.
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What pedigree would Retegui bring?
Retegui missed a penalty against Arsenal when the two sides drew 0-0 back on matchday one of the Champions League, but the 25-year-old has been in exceptional scoring form this season.
If Arsenal did have scouts in attendance at the Wankdorf Stadium, they would have been very impressed by the performance of Retegui, who opened the scoring on the plastic pitch in Bern, before netting the fourth goal for Gian Piero Gasperini's side before the interval.
The Argentine-born striker is the current capocannoniere in Serie A, having scored 12 goals in 13 games - three more than any other player.
In attempts to solve their lingering striking crisis, the Italian FA unearthed Retegui, who was scoring regularly in the Argentine top flight for Tigre, and persuaded him to switch to the Azzurri due to his Italian heritage.
Retegui is now the number one choice for the national team, after battling with Gianluca Scamacca at Euro 2024, and he scored twice for Italy as they reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Nations League this autumn.
Andrew Delaney
