Real Madrid striker Mariano Díaz might not be able to turn down an offer from Arsenal if the Gunners comes calling, as per reputed Spanish journalist Anton Meana.
The Spaniard helped Madrid thump Cultural Leonesa 6-1 to take the aggregate score to an impressive 13-2 in Copa del Rey, as the youngster played his first full 90 minutes for the club he joined in 2011.
The 23-year-old has attracted plenty of interest with his performances this season, also scoring in the 7-1 away leg, and talk of a move away in January has gained momentum since his hat-trick.
Despite only playing little part in the Real Madrid first team this season, Mariano has not resigned to playing second-fiddle behind primary strikers Karim Benzema and Álvaro Morata, and his performances will give Zinedine Zidane some food for thought.
When asked about the possible move, Spanish journalist Antón Meana explained that there would only be one reason for the player to leave in January, and it’s called the Emirates. According to TodoMercadoWeb, he said:
[Mariano] said that, unless he gets an offer he wouldn’t be able to turn down, like Arsenal, he will stay and doesn’t want to leave in January.
Mariano is a handful to cope with if you’re an opposing defender. At nearly 6ft tall, he’s strong and sturdy. He can bulldoze his way past defenders, has a canon of a right foot, and is an aerial threat too.
He can punish you in more ways than one, and his skill set is diverse enough that it can often surprise opposition players. For one goal, he might blast a free-kick. Another, he’ll manifest a delicate lob from outside the area when you least expect it.
While he does have an impressive repertoire, Mariano’s biggest asset is his sheer athleticism and ability to smash through defenders with his pace and power. He will bounce off defenders and dribble through you until he finds his way. It’s obliterating and exhausting.
He’s also tremendously good at making runs without the ball and latching onto through balls. If he has an incisive pass fed to him in space behind the defenders, he is difficult to catch up with.
Whether that was a come and get me plea to Arsène Wenger by the youngster or just him stating his destination preference if he was to be sold by Real Madrid ever, we don’t know. But the fact that the striker sees Arsenal as an offer he cannot turn down will certainly please fans of the Gunners.
Sure, it’s not a Benzema, but he sure does have all the traits to replicate him.
