Arsenal are putting their reputation on the line for Alexandre Lacazette
Five years ago, almost to the day, Arsenal swooped for a Ligue 1 striker. The time since at the Emirates Stadium could be defined as ‘The Olivier Giroud Years,’ with the Frenchman becoming the embodiment of the Gunners’ tragic tedium. Now, however, the end of those years could be signified by a move for another Ligue 1 striker.
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Indeed, Alexandre Lacazette appears to have been identified by the North London club as their number one target this summer. In what is a most symbolic development, Lyon reportedly want Olivier Giroud as part of any deal. In the event that Lacazette pitches up at the Emirates Stadium, it seems likely that the player he is replacing will head in the opposite direction.
But by making a move for Lacazette Arsenal are putting their reputation as an elite club on the line. The Frenchman would significantly upgrade the Gunners’ current frontline, giving Arsene Wenger the kind of natural number nine he has lacked since Robin Van Persie left the club all those years ago.
A true number nine should have signed years ago, with Giroud too unreliable and Alexis Sanchez better used in other areas of the pitch, but at least Arsenal are now making an effort to address this deficiency. Lacazette might not be of the very highest caliber, but he fits the bill in many ways. The failure to secure his signing, however, would be a great humiliation for the North London club.
If they are a bona fide member of the European elite, Arsenal will get a deal for Lacazette over the line with minimal fuss. While Manchester United have been fleetingly mentioned as potential suitors, the Gunners have no real competition for the French International, certainly not at the price being mooted. They have the market to themselves.
And yet speculation of Lacazette’s rumoured move to Arsenal is already starting to drag. Premier League rivals Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United have all made big money signings this summer, while the Gunners have only made the signing of Sead Kolasinac from Schalke as a free agent.
Certainly not for the first time, Arsenal are at risk of being left behind by those around them. The signing of Lacazette is as much about proving progression as it is about improving Wenger’s team. Without Champions League football, the transfer market was always likely to be more of a challenge for the Gunners this summer, but luring the Lyon striker would underline their continued attractiveness to prospective signings.
Of course, the flip side of that hypothesis is the possibility that Arsenal are unable to capture Lacazette as the only team in for the striker. That would be the harshest manifestation of their decline and confirmation that the failure to finish in the top four last season will have a real impact on the club in the transfer market.
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They must get this right. Far too often in the past Arsenal have failed to make the signings they so desperately needed. There is a general consensus, for instance, that N’Golo Kante could have ended up at the Emirates Stadium last summer had Wenger made the case to the midfielder over Chelsea. Instead, he joined the Blues and helped them to the Premier League title.
Time and time again, Arsenal have lost ground in the transfer market before they can even prove their point on the pitch. By moving for Lacazette, it would appear Wenger has decided to place all his metaphorical eggs in one basket, and that’s a basket he can’t afford to drop. Lacazette is everything to Arsenal this summer, good or bad. That’s the risk they are taking with this move.
