Al-Hilal signed Gabriel Martinelli from Arsenal earlier this week (Photo: Al-Hilal/Twitter) Arsenal have been told they should have beaten Manchester City to the signing of a £65million on deadline day, who would have ‘hit the ground running’ at the Emirates. It was known from the start of the summer that Mikel Arteta was looking to improve his options on the left-flank but his side are now arguably even weaker in that position. Christos Tzolis was signed to replace Leandro Trossard but the Gunners failed to bring in another forward before deadline day and have since allowed Gabriel Martinelli to join Al-Hilal for £60million. That’s despite the Premier League champions pursuing deals for several huge stars over the summer, namely Morgan Rogers, Vinicius Junior and Julian Alvarez. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. One sticking point for those three players was their price tags. All three would have set Arsenal back nine-figures, with Rogers joining rivals Chelsea for £117m. But former Arsenal academy star and England international Jay Bothroyd believes a relatively cheaper option would have been the perfect signing – but the player has now joined the Citizens. Arsenal should have gone for [Iliman] Ndiaye early doors,’ the former Premier League striker said on Sky Sports News. Arsenal were linked with Iliman Ndiaye but the Everton star joined Man City on deadline day (Photo: Getty) ‘Yes, we went for Vinicius Junior who’s arguably the best left-winger in the world, but when you look at the value for money for Ndiaye, I feel like £65million is an absolute steal. ‘Man City, for me, had the best window. They got in top, top players straight away that can come in, hit the ground running. And they’ve got depth now. ‘You got [Jeremy] Doku and Ndiaye on that left-hand side. You got Phil Foden and Antoine Semenyo on the right. You got Rayan Cherki [in attacking midfield], Foden can play in that role as well. Christos Tzolis is now the only natural left-winger at Arsenal (Photo: Getty) ‘They’ve got so much depth going forward now. It was a great signing.’ Ndiaye had been tenuously linked with Arsenal over the summer following two strong seasons at Everton, but in the final week of the transfer window, it seemed Tottenham had won the race for his signature. That moved collapsed however and Enzo Maresca quickly swooped in to lure the Senegal international to the Etihad, with Jack Grealish moving in the opposite direction. Eberechi Eze is expected to feature more on the left this season (Photo: Getty) ‘As an Arsenal fan, we didn’t improve that left-hand side and I feel like that’s one place we definitely needed to,’ Bothroyd added. ‘We got Tzolis there. Yes, he’s started well, but he’s a young, inexperienced player that doesn’t know the Premier League. ‘Having Ndiaye… He would be first choice. He would hit the ground running and it would bring real balance to that Arsenal side.’ Tzolis, a £34m arrival from Club Brugge, recorded three assists in his first two Arsenal games but was hooked at half-time against Aston Villa last Monday following a very poor performance. While not their preferred position, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke can operate on the left-wing and it will be interesting to see who Arteta picks on Sunday when they face Chelsea at the Emirates. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
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