Arsenal told to target Wilfried Zaha, as Mikel Arteta makes Bukayo Saka claim

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has been told to try and sign Crystal Palace ace Wilfried Zaha this summer, as the Gunners boss responded to Steven Gerrard’s claims about Bukayo Saka

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been told to return with a fresh bid for Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha this summer.

The Gunners went in for the Ivory Coast winger in 2019, having a £40million bid rejected before opting to bring in Nicolas Pepe for a club-record £72million instead. And Arsenal legend Paul Merson has recommended his old club return with a fresh approach to try and sign Zaha once the summer transfer window opens.

It comes as Mikel Arteta has responded to Steven Gerrard following the Aston Villa manager’s dig at Bukayo Saka. And Gary Neville has performed a dramatic U-turn on his assessment of Arsenal and their boss Arteta.

Here are Mirror Football’s latest Arsenal headlines.

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Neville’s U-turn

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville appears to have dramatically changed his mind on Mikel Arteta and his Arsenal side.

Earlier in the season, Neville slammed Mikel Arteta after his “soft” Arsenal side were “bullied” by Brentford in their opening weekend defeat. It came after the pundit accused Arteta’s side of being “boring” in December 2020.

But with Arsenal now sitting in fourth in the Premier League, Neville appears to have changed his tune, lauding Arteta for “getting the maximum” out his squad and implementing a definitive style of play.

Read the full story here.

Arteta hits back at Gerrard

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has hit back at Aston Villa’s Steven Gerrard over his claims about Bukayo Saka.

Saka was in impressive form as the Gunners beat Gerrard’s side last month as he netted the winning goal in a 1-0 win for Arteta’s side. But following the match, the England winger said he had been targeted by Villa’s players – a claim Gerrard did not take kindly to as he told Saka “that’s football”.

And the war of words shows no sign of cooling off, with Arteta now calling for protection for the “best players”.

Read the full story here.

Gunners told to sign Zaha

Arsenal icon Paul Merson wants his former club to try and sign Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha this summer.

The Gunners previously deemed the Ivory Coast winger as being too expensive, instead choosing to spend a club-record £72million on Nicolas Pepe. But Merson believes Zaha “would have made a difference to Arsenal” had their previous bid been successful.

He also believes that Zaha “won’t stay at Palace forever” and the Gunners should go in with a fresh bid for him.

Read the full story here.