Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser is the ideal creator for Arsenal this summer, according to the 25-year-old’s former team-mate Jack Wilshere.
The two played alongside each other during Wilshere’s loan spell on the south coast back in the 2016/17 season, and the ex-Arsenal midfielder believes Fraser could be the man to load the ammunition for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette next term after previously being linked with a move to the Emirates.
Speaking to Football.London, Wilshere said: “Ryan would be the ideal candidate to load the bullets for Aubameyang and Lacazette to fire up front. Imagine him and [Mesut] Ozil in the side. Imagine the number of chances they would create for the strikers.”
After the season he has just had, it is not hard to see where Wilshere is coming from. In the Premier League, Fraser provided 14 assists, which was just one less than what the winner of the Playmaker award Eden Hazard managed.
And when you look at more of his numbers, they also make for good reading, especially compared to Arsenal’s current crop of attackers.
For example, Fraser, who looks no closer to extending his expiring contract, made more key passes (2.4) per game than any other player in Unai Emery’s squad, with Ozil coming the closest at 1.9 (as per WhoScored).
That puts the Scotland international only behind Willian (2.5), Hazard (2.6) and James Maddison (2.8) when looking at the Premier League as a whole.
It is significantly more than Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s 1.2 and Alex Iwobi’s 1.1, showing exactly the sort of added creativity he would bring to Arsenal.
It would, of course, be unfortunate for Eddie Howe and Bournemouth. But as Wilshere has suggested, he could very well be the man to load the bullets for Aubameyang and Lacazette next season.
Bournemouth fans, do you think Fraser will end up at Arsenal? Let us know what you think in the comment section below!
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