Bad News Arsenal Fans…New Striker Unlikely As Chamakh Says He’s Staying

It looks like Arsenal fans are going to have to put up with Marouane Chamakh for the rest of the season, after the striker told the Mirror he wont be leaving the club this month.

The Mirror’s report claims that despite interest from clubs such as Fiorentina, Bordeaux, Paris Saint-Germain and Lille, the struggling Moroccan forward will remain in London once he returns from the African Cup of Nations and fight for his place in the team.

The 28-year-old also confirmed in his quotes that he had spoken with Arsene Wenger and despite the interest from other clubs, he wants to try and regain his form with the Gunners. Speaking to the Mirror, Chamakh said:

“I am relaxed about my future. I’ve spoken with the coach [Wenger] and I’m staying with Arsenal after the Africa Cup of Nations,”

“I think Wenger has confidence in me. It was that reason that I left Bordeaux to join Arsenal.

“I had some good performances in my first season and it’s possible that I can repeat those.

“My agents have had calls from other clubs, but I want to show what I can do in the next few months.

“I’m tired of the rumours, because I only want to be focused on my work for Morocco. Personally, I have a lot more in my game and I want to demonstrate my level.

“Of course I want to play more, but it’s very difficult for a forward at Arsenal. The level is very high, but that’s the challenge that I was looking for.”

Don’t get me wrong, i like the guys attitude. He knows it’s hard for him to be selected ahead of Robin van Persie, he seems to acknowledge he needs to improve his level of performances and he’s willing to work hard to do so.

The problem is, he’s simply not good enough to be considered a quality back up option to Van Persie. Arsenal need a goalscorer to come off the bench or replace RVP when he’s tired or god forbid, injured, and Chamakh isn’t the man for the job.

He has always worked hard for the team and tried his best, but unfortunately it hasn’t worked and he’s simply out of his depth. I, like many Arsenal fans, was hoping he’d be shipped out this month and Arsene would slash the cash on a proven striker who could lift the goal-scoring burden from van Persie’s shoulders and help secure Champions League qualification, but it looks like any hopes of that happening are now out the window.