George Graham tells Arsenal to sign 25-goal striker amid new links to Edinson Cavani transfer

GArsenal manager Arsene Wenger has been urged to sign an additional striker before the end of the summer transfer window in order to stage a genuine assault on winning the Premier League. Former boss George Graham says the club are devoid of a presence in attack and must sign a forward capable of scoring 25 goals a season.

The goalless draw with Liverpool exposed the Gunners' lightweight forward line, with Olivier Giroud ineffectual for long periods. The Frenchman went close on one occasion before being replaced by Theo Walcott, but his mishit effort was clawed away by Simon Mignolet in the second half.

Prior to kick-off at ther Emirates Stadium, Arsenal were handed a blow to any plans they had of adding a striker to their artillery after Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema confirmed via his Twitter account that he was staying at the Bernabeu. The Mirror now reports that the North London club will turn their attention to signing Edinson Cavani from Paris Saint-Germain during the final week of the window. Graham has advised the club to continue their search, warning them they will not figure in the title race without a "great striker".

"Arsenal need an out-and-out goalscorer," Graham told TalkSport. "They're not making enough chances up front and they're not taking their chances either

"They need a striker who can get 25 league goals a season if they want to win the Premier League – but where are they? We're all looking around the country looking for the great strikers and great centre halves – they're already with top clubs and they're not available.

"I don't know whether there's a lack of mentally strong players in teams nowadays. It's all lovely beautiful football, but sometimes you've got to dig deep and I just think Arsenal need a couple of players in their side that need that mentality."