Ex-Arsenal starlet who was sold for just £4m bags second hat-trick in two weeks

That's because Mika Biereth has scored his second hat-trick in just two weeks for new club Monaco.

His trio of goals came in a 7-1 victory over Ligue 1 side Nantes, 14 days after he scored a hat-trick against Auxerre.

It means that the former Gunners' starlet has now scored seven in seven to emerge as one of Europe's top young strikers.

The timing couldn't be worse for Arsenal who are currently without a recogised striker due to their lengthy attacking injury list.

Biereth started his youth career with Fulham before joining the Gunners in 2021 where he shone for the club's under-23s side.

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The Danish youth star never made a senior appearance for Mikel Arteta's side, but was an unused sub four times.

After mixed loan spells with RKC Waalwijk, Motherwell and Sturm Graz, the Premier League giants sanctioned a permanent exit to the Austrian side last summer.

Costing just £4million, the deal represented a huge coup for the Austrian side.

With the benefit of hindsight, Arsenal fans might be scratching their heads as to why they agreed to such a low fee.

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After scoring 14 goals for Sturm Graz in the first half of the season, Biereth completed a permanent move to Monaco last month for a fee worth up to £12.5million.

That fee is also looking like a real bargain after Biereth's electric start to life in France.

His two recent hat-tricks mean that the 21-year-old has now scored seven goals in seven fixtures for the Ligue 1 giants.

Responded to news of his success, some Arsenal fans admit they knew he was special.

He wrote: "2021… Edu Gaspar I will never forgive you for selling Mika Biereth. He should have been Arsenal's main striker."

A second said: "Another day to lament about the selling of Mika Biereth. Many of us knew he was class."

"We could have given Mika Biereth a chance," a third added.

Biereth is a teammate of another former Arsenal talent in Folarin Balogun.

Balogun joined Monaco in the summer of 2023 and has scored 11 goals in 42 games for the club.

However this term he's been limited to just three goals in 10 games due to a shoulder injury.

Both Biereth and Balogun could be of real use to Arsenal right now as they look to muddle through without a recognised striker.

Gabriel Jesus is a long-term absentee due to a knee injury, while Kai Havertz will be out until next season after undergoing surgery on a hamstring injury.

He joins Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli on the sidelines, leaving Arteta with Ethan Nwaneri, Raheem Sterling and Leandro Trossard as attacking options.

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Thankfully for Arteta, they had enough to earn a 2-0 victory over Leicester on Saturday thanks to two goals from Mikel Merino.

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Next up for Arsenal is a tricky home clash with West Ham next weekend.