As Arsenal close in on a record club deal for Alexandre Lacazette, it’s time for us to understand more about the clinical French striker. He’s been a transfer target of Arsène Wenger’s for several years and it looks as though the boss may finally get his man.
After publicly affirming that he would be leaving Lyon this summer, the 26-year old has been subject to interest from Atletico Madrid, Manchester United, Liverpool and of course his most likely destination, Arsenal.
We know that he’s a clinical striker that a whole host of clubs want, but there’s a lot more than meets the eye with Lacazette. He’s a versatile forward that can play up front and on the wing, but here are 5 things you didn’t know about the Frenchman.
#5 Capped at all levels for France
You can gauge how special a player is and how special they’ve been by their involvement on the international scene. For Alexandre Lacazette, his involvement in the French national team has been evident from the start. For the Lyon forward his talent was always evident from a young age but his finishing wasn’t up to the mark until he reached the U21s scene.
Also read: 5 players close to signing for Arsenal this summer
As a result, Lacazette wasn’t able to debut for the French senior team until he was 22 years old in 2013. Before the debut, he represented Les Blues in all the youth levels, and was making headway at Olympique Lyon.
#4 Ligue 1 Team of the Season regular
Ever since his debut back in 2010, Alexandre Lacazette has become somewhat of a household name in France. His rise to stardom is best represented by the fact that he’s been part of the past three Ligue 1 Team of the Season squads.
When you think of the amount of attacking talent Paris Saint-Germain have possessed over the years, the feat becomes that much more incredible. The incomprehensible Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edison Cavani, Angel Di Maria and Lucas Moura all succumbed to Lacazette’s prowess.
Not only is the striker the best player at his club, he’s heralded as one of the best in the country and soon Europe.
#3 Olympique Lyon record holder
From what we’ve heard about Alexandre Lacazette, the Frenchman is a natural born goalscorer that’s been Lyon’s saviour. In the past three league campaigns, Lacazette has scored 20+ goals in each of them. Last season, he mustered the highest conversion rate (38.9%) out of anyone in Europe’s top five leagues.
In the 2014/15 season, Lacazette scored 27 goals in Ligue 1, breaking the club record for a player’s individual tally for a season.
Now he’s broken his own record by scoring 28 goals in the 2016/17 campaign. Last season, only two of the the 26-year old’s goals came from outside the penalty box; he’s a modern day poacher.
#2 Football runs in his blood
A lot of the time, footballers often stand out in their families owing to the massive wages they earn and on rare occasions, a player follows in the footsteps of his father. In Alexandre Lacazette’s case, he’s the best out of an already shining bunch. I don’t know what it is that runs in the family, but both his cousin and older brother have played football to a high level professionally.
His cousin Romuald Lacazette currently plays for 1860 Munich, a team in the German football. In addition to that, Lacazette’s older brother played in the 2nd division of Swedish football before turning into a fully qualified coach.
#1 Claude Puel gave him his big break
Yes, it’s true. The recently sacked Southampton manager is the reason Alexandre Lacazette is the hot prospect he is today. Claude Puel was the manager of Olympique Lyon for three years between 2008 and 2011.
After seven years in Lyon’s youth academy, Lacazette was handed his senior professional debut by Claude Puel on the 5th of May 2010, at the age of just 19. This was before the Frenchman had even signed his first professional contract at the club, which he did a month later after his debut.
The following season, the youngster was a regular fixture in the Lyon first team and as they say the rest is history.
