Why Arsenal should hold onto Alexandre Lacazette amidst Atletico interest
According to Mundo Deportivo (h/t Daily Mail), Atletico Madrid are keeping close tabs on Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette ahead of the summer transfer window.
Lacazette, 28, came through Lyon’s youth ranks and established himself as one of the best strikers in France after breaking into the club’s senior team. In 275 appearances for the French outfit, he scored 129 goals and provided 43 assists.
The Frenchman was at his best in Lyon, where he scored 15 or more goals in Ligue 1 in each of his last three campaigns with the club. Arsenal signed the forward in the summer of 2017, expecting him to fulfil his potential but Lacazette has not yet discovered his best form despite being in his third season at the Emirates.
The Gunners have been inconsistent despite Mikel Arteta bringing a change in the system. Though they haven’t lost a league game since the start of the new year, they haven’t made convincing progress yet. Arsenal are currently 9th in the league and are aiming for European qualification.
Club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been the only player to perform consistently, having scored 20 goals across all competitions. And he has not received much support from the other forwards in Arsenal’s ranks. Lacazette, who mainly features as a centre-forward, has only 9 goals to his name, whereas, he needs to be scoring frequently to lift the team to the top.
The Gunners have also crashed out of the Europa League and the race to qualify for the Champions League or the Europa League has got tougher. Hence, they need to retain all their star players for the next campaign and hope they deliver right from the start.
In that case, keeping hold of the Frenchman would be a wise decision by the club. Gabriel Martinelli and Eddie Nketiah are the other two centre-forward options available at Arteta’s disposal but both of them are too young to be depended upon for a whole campaign. They need experience to lead the line continuously. Hence, Lacazette can help the Gunners with that if he makes a shift in his game.
The 28-year-old has the potential to lead the line and Arteta should give him some time to adjust. He is a proven goalscorer from his Lyon days and that can be fulfilled if Arteta takes a chance on him.
A centre-forward by trade, Lacazette is capable of saving the team as he did against West Ham by scoring after coming on from the bench.
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Verdict
The 182k-a-week Frenchman scored 14 and 13 goals in his first two seasons in England respectively and he is capable of doing a lot better than that if he is given the right opportunities.
Hence, the Gunners would be wise to keep hold of the former Lyon man and should stop him from moving to Atletico Madrid.
