Why Arsenal should be more than happy with Icardi-Aubameyang swap

Bengaluru, May 12: If reports in Italy are to be believed, Inter is set to offer Arsenal a deal that is simply too good to refuse. The Nerazzurri are reportedly ready to offer Arsenal the services of their former skipper and talisman Mauro Icardi in return of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Considering how crucial Aubameyang has been for Arsenal since he signed for them from Borussia Dortmund, it will be difficult for the Gunners to start life without their skipper after his departure. But, with the Gabon international already thought to be on his way out of the club, getting Icardi in return as part of the deal makes a lot of sense for the north London club.

Replacing the club's best and most important player is a tough thing, and clubs fail to do that more often than not. Since he signed for the gunners, Aubameyang has scored 61 goals for the club while producing 13 assists in 97 games.

The figures of the Gabon international are outstanding, considering that he is surrounded by mediocre players all around him. But, the Gunners still had to make a decision about their talisman anyway because his contract is up for expiry in the summer of 2021 and making him stay against his wishes would only mean that they would have to part ways with him next summer and that too for free.

There is no shortage of suitors for Aubameyang with the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Premier League rivals like Chelsea and Manchester United all said to be keen on snapping up the Gabonese superstar.

But getting a proper replacement would still be a commendable task with the Gunners financially not as stable as they were earlier. Inter's offer, in these circumstances, is a golden opportunity for Mikel Arteta's as he would get a more than capable replacement of Aubameyang in Icardi.

The Argentine international is as impressive as Aubameyang in front of goal if not more and is almost three years younger as well. Still just 27 years of age, Icardi would be a long-term prospect at the Emirates offering his peak years to the north London club. If we compare Aubameyang's current season's statistics to that of Icardi this season, the Argentine comes on top in almost every department.

Aubameyang has played 32 matches in all competitions so far this campaign appearing just once more than Icardi and both have plundered the exact same number of goals that is 20. However, Icardi has played a considerably much lesser number of minutes in a PSG side that is packed with quality in every department which means his minutes per goal record is much more impressive. The Argentine has taken just 98 minutes on an average to find the back of the net compared to 136 of Aubameyang.

Icardi also comes out on top in assists, shot conversion rate and passing accuracy. Aubameyang has produced 80 shots on target this season compared to Icardi's 54 which shows that the Argentine was far more lethal with his finishing.

Icardi's conversion rate is among the best in Europe with 37% and he is much ahead of Aubameayng in this department who boasts just a 25% conversion rate. Icardi's 82.9% passing accuracy is also top-class for a number nine while Aubameyang's accuracy is much behind with just 72.9%.

Aubameyang has created 26 chances this campaign compared to Icardi's 23 but the Argentine has played almost 750 lesser minutes compared to the Gabon international. Icardi also loses the ball less often than Aubameyang.

The Arsenal striker has lost the ball 2.8 times per game while Icardi has lost just once every game. However, in Aubameyang's defence, we can say that he plays in an Arsenal side that is way average compared to PSG but Icardi seems like a more than capable replacement.

The only thing Arsenal must be wary of if they sign Icardi is his off-field antics of the superstar and his wide cum agent Wanda Nara. Icardi used to be the hero of Inter even two years ago and now the Nerazzurri is determined to offload the striker.

This speaks volumes about the 27-year-old. The 27-year-old is a really tricky player to manage and Mikel Arteta might find it hard to do that because he is still pretty much a newbie in management. But from the footballing perspective, this swap deal makes a lot of sense for everyone involved.