Arsenal must sign their own Nemanja Matic to challenge Chelsea says Niall Quinn

Arsenal should make signing a player in the mould of Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic a priority in order to close the gap to the Premier League champions, according to former striker Niall Quinn.

Matic joined Chelsea in the January transfer window of 2014 for £21m ($33m) from Benfica and has been key to the club winning the title this term, with the Serbian being rewarded for his efforts by being named in the PFA team of the season.

Though Francis Coquelin has ably filled in as the holding midfielder role during the second half of the season, Arsenal have been accused of lacking a world-class player in the position and Quinn says the Gunners must make filling the role their primary task this summer.

"People have different opinions and people talk about Arsenal getting a top-class centre-half, getting meaner if you like in front of goal and giving their goalkeeper a chance," he told Talksport.

"Personally, I can't get away from what Chelsea are doing and what Arsenal need to do to close the gap when Chelsea have a player like Matic, who is sweeping up all the dangers that comes through midfield in games against Chelsea.

"It is that one type of player that I think Arsenal need. Arsene needs to sacrifice that free-flowing football he wants to play in midfield to have one player in there who can break up things in a way his players currently can't do.

"Coquelin came back on loan from Charlton at Christmas and looks to have been the best at that over the last few months, but at the same time I think there is room for a world-class player in there who can really crank it up.

"The way to think about it is if Matic played in the Arsenal side, how much better would they be?"

One position Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has ruled out reinforcing is at centre-back, with Calum Chambers set for a permanent central role in the north Londoners' backline.

Gabriel Paulista's arrival in January from Villarreal helped bolster the club's resources but Wenger feels Chambers will be better off moving to centre-back in the long term after spells at right-back and in midfield.