Lyon have released an official statement on their twitter account stating the details of a bid from Arsenal for their star striker Alexandre Lacazette. It has been rumoured for some time now that the Gunners were pursuing the 25-year-old and Lyon have just confirmed those reports.
In the statement, the club are denying that Arsenal had bid €48 million for the striker but instead the figure they submitted is only €35 million. The club have also said they do not intend to sell the player for a price than what they are asking.
It is a very interesting move from Lyon to publicly state that their player is being targeted by a club. This might either trigger Arsenal to back down or make them even more motivated to get their man.
Wenger is not known to be making his transfer business very public and he will not be impressed with Lyon revealing the news. Arsenal are in need of firepower up front and earlier had Jamie Vardy turn them down by signing a new 5-year contract.
This is the translation of the statement:
"Olympique Lyonnais categorically denies having received an offer of €48 million from Arsenal for the transfer of Alexandre Lacazette as Le Progres claims in this morning's edition," the statement read.
The reality is that Arsenal formulated an offer of €35 million which Olympique Lyonnais did not follow up on for one reason only: OL will keep Alexandre Lacazette who is irreplaceable and who is one of the main leaders of Bruno Genesio's squad.”
Earlier there were rumours Mauro Icardi was in talks with the club but it turned out that news was false and he has committed his future to Inter. Lacazette scored 21 goals in 37 appearances last season as Lyon finished behind champions PSG in Ligue 1.
The striker apparently wants out and is keen on joining Wenger's side. He is reported to have turned down a move to West Ham United earlier in the summer to try and force his transfer to Arsenal.
Wenger might be hesitant to spend any more on the player but he is certainly in need of firepower.
