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Arsenal looking to land the next Ruud van Nistelrooy

| 09.05.2016

He may be set for a huge summer as his home nation look to win the European Championships, but Frenchman Olivier Giroud could find himself up against some major competition by the time he returns to Arsenal after the tournament.

The Gunners striker hasn’t found the net since a brace in the 3-3 thriller with Liverpool in January, a barren spell which has coincided with Arsenal’s title hopes evaporating for another year.

There’s little doubting that boss Arsene Wenger is set for a busier transfer window than in previous seasons, and one of his reported targets is Dutch scoring supremo Vincent Janssen.

The AZ Alkmaar forward is leading the way in the Eredivisie with 26 league strikes this season, an incredible return given Janssen doesn’t turn 22 until next month.

His total figures for the year read 28 goals from 40 appearances, but noting that he didn’t score in his first nine of the campaign, you can quickly whittle that down to a staggering 28 in just 31 games.

Few players not called Suarez, Ronaldo or Messi can match the Dutchman for form in 2016, with Janssen firing in an incredible 21 of those 28 goals since the New Year.

It’s the sort of form which has rightly brought the attention of Europe’s biggest clubs, and AZ now face a fraught summer to cling on to their prize asset.

Janssen’s stunning goal return saw him called up to the international side for the first time in March, scoring a goal on his first start in the Netherlands’ 2-1 win over England at Wembley.

AZ only paid £300k for Janssen in the summer of 2015, and a value of £4.5m from transfermarkt.co.uk suggests Arsenal could snap up one of Europe’s hottest talents for a relative bargain.

Despite his tender years, at 5ft 11in, Janssen’s built of a stature not to dissimilar too ex-Arsenal man Robin van Persie.

But his prowess in and around the box has got everybody comparing him to another Premier League legend, Ruud van Nistelrooy.

The former Manchester United man boasted one of the most deadly goal-scoring ratios in the modern game, and on current form, there’s every reason Janssen could become every bit as successful on English shores.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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Author

Richard Marsh

Richard loves his sport, especially if it involves the sound of tyres screaming around a race track. He's not fussy though and his '90s Premier League nostalgia and knowledge of team nicknames is tough to match.