Arsenal Transfers: 10 Strikers Arsene Wenger Must Sign Before Window Shuts

What a difference a year makes.

If somebody was naive enough to assume that footballers were professional enough to not let transfer speculation distract them from their job, the plight of Saido Berahino should slay such innocence. From hero to villain in just a year, the 22-year-old emerged as a star during the 14/15 season, bagging 20 goals for the Baggies before becoming the subject of a series of failed bids from Tottenham.

Despite welcoming such interest to the point where he petulantly declared that he wouldn’t play for West Brom’s chairman again, the move never materialised and the club’s most valued commodity was forced to sit on the bench for much of last season. So why would Arsenal go near a player who looked unfit, disinterested and scored just four league goals last season? A sulky brat is the last thing the club needs surely?

When motivated, the Burundi-born talent is nigh-on unstoppable. There was a reason that Mauricio Pochettino craved him so, and it is his surly, immature attitude that has put suitors off. On the cusp of the national team a year ago, if Arsene Wenger were to grant Berahino the Champions League move he yearns for, the pacey frontman with sharp goalscoring instincts might just rediscover the necessary drive to resurrect a wobbling career.