Arsenal Transfer News: Karim Benzema Pursuit 'Embarrassing,' Says Ian Wright

Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright has described the Gunners' summer pursuit of Real Madrid star Karim Benzema as "embarrassing."

The north London outfit were strongly linked with the French striker in the summer, as manager Arsene Wenger looked to add firepower to his weak front line, per David Hynter in the Guardian.

However, the move never materialised and was emphatically ruled out by Benzema himself as the transfer window neared its close:

BT Sport pundit Wright has now bemoaned the way Arsenal dealt with their pursuit and the fact that they made it known they were interested in Benzema before establishing whether the 27-year-old was even available, via MailOnline's Martin Domin:

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I thought the Benzema situation was embarrassing in the way they pursued it. Trying to get a player like that, straight off the bat you have to find out if they're interested in coming. If they're interested, you pursue it. I thought they dealt with it was pretty bad, and the way he mugged Arsenal off on Twitter by saying Madrid is his home wasn't great.

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Arsenal failed to add any new strikers to their squad in the summer—they added no outfield players of any kind—and are currently relying on an inconsistent Olivier Giroud and an out-of-position Theo Walcott in the No. 9 role, as analysed by Bleacher Report's Andy Brassell:

Giroud missed a number of chances and was sent off as Arsenal lost to Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League on Wednesday night, adding yet more credence to the argument the Frenchman cannot be relied upon to perform consistently as the front-line striker.

The Gunners have a huge amount of creative talent in the likes of Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey, but they may struggle this season without a top-class goalscorer.

Wenger arguably needs to add a new striker to his squad in January no matter how well his side do in the run-up to Christmas.

However, the French manager is seemingly satisfied with the options he currently has, per talkSPORT's Ian Abrahams:

The problem is, though, that Walcott and Sanchez are not out-and-out strikers, and if Giroud is underperforming or injured, Arsenal are left with an unbalanced side.

Benzema would have been an ideal purchase as he is both a natural striker and a creative presence who could have worked well with the likes of Sanchez and Walcott.

As Wright notes, he was never a realistic target.

Arsenal need to identify a different striker to add in January—Marseille's Michy Batshuayi is being touted as a potential option per French newspaper L'Equipe (via the Express' Adam Skinner)—as a failure to bolster their attack in the new year could prove costly to their Premier League and Champions League ambitions.