One of the signs of a great striker is the ability to be ruthlessly clinical and score a goal with their first or only opportunity of a game.
Such ability allows a side to get points when they are not playing well, or when games are tight, and converting defeats into draws and draws into wins are the foundations by which trophy winning campaigns are built on.
That is why Robin van Persie is so valuable to Arsenal and coveted by some of the game’s biggest clubs.
The Dutchman has now scored 33 goals this calendar year, just three behind Alan Shearer’s record of 36. He is also unsurprisingly therefore one of the favourites in the premiership top scorer betting.
His winner on Saturday against Everton will surely be near the top of the list if those goals were sorted in terms of technical brilliance.
Up until the 70th minute Arsenal had struggled to break down a well organised and dogged Toffees side, who had even started to come out of their shell.
However, van Persie then showed stunning technical ability and skill to allow Alex Song’s chipped pass to go across his body before firing in a fizzing left-footed
volley that smashed into the far post and into the net.
It was the type of skill another legendary Dutchman – Marco van Basten – became famous for and if van Persie continues the way he is he will certainly find himself placed alongside the legendary former AC Milan and Ajax striker in the Holland half of fame.
The win send Arsenal back into the top four and if you bet on the Premier League the Gunners have suddenly emerged as an outsider after recovering from a horrific start to the season that culminated in that infamous 8-2 to Manchester United.
It seems unlikely that van Persie will be able to keep up this form for the entire season so Arsene Wenger will hope his other strikers can provide some support. But all successful sides need a talisman and van Persie is fitting that bill perfectly at present.
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