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Arsenal are reportedly looking to sell Alexandre Lacazette this summer. The Gunners are keen to offload their French striker to make room in the squad for future signings, as reported by the Mirror via Transfer Window Podcast.
Arsenal signed Alexandre Lacazette in the summer of 2017 from Lyon. Since then, the diminutive striker has scored 65 goals and provided 28 assists for the Gunners in 170 matches.
He was signed to lead the line with the likes of Mesut Ozil behind him. Lacazette was also soon joined by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the final third for the Gunners. However, in his four-year spell at the club, the Frenchman has failed to consistently deliver goals.
Barring one FA Cup trophy, Lacazette has not won any other silverware with Arsenal. Individually, he has flattered to deceive and has only hit the 20-goal mark in one season.
Moreover, the French striker, who was signed for £50 million, has been on a downward spiral in the last two seasons. Under the management of head coach Mikel Arteta, Lacazette has fallen down the pecking order.
Mikel Arteta has used the likes of Eddie Nketiah and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang upfront, reducing Lacazette to a bench role. It does not come as a big surprise that Arsenal are now planning to sell him.
Moving Lacazette will not only make room in the Gunners squad but also free up their wage bills enabling them to sign new players. It has been reported that Arsenal are keen to sell him and have offered him to multiple clubs across Europe.
Is Lacazette's style of play disruptive to Arteta's tactical system?
Alexandre Lacazette is a wily striker. He is a number nine with great finishing abilities. However, the Frenchman is not the physically strong, target man who can knock the ball down for his team-mates or shove off a defender.
Instead, Lacazette is more of a withdrawn forward who loves to drop deep to pick the ball up from midfield and hold it up for his fellow forwards. He compliments the movement of the midfield runners and brings the wingers into the game. Lacazette's development as a withdrawn forward has been beneficial at times for the Gunners. However, it has also harmed his ability to move in the box as fluently as he used to previously at Olympique Lyon.
This has, in turn, greatly affected the Arsenal forward line, which failed to score goals regularly last season. This could be a massive reason why Mikel Arteta is ready to move him on in search of a goal-scoring striker.
Arsenal players are big fans of Lacazette
Arsenal's decision to sell the striker has definitely not downgraded Lacazette's popularity in the dressing room. The club are currently on their pre-season tour and new signing Nuno Tavares has praised Lacazette and his strike partner Aubameyang. He said:
"It's good to play with the best, like Aubameyang and Laca. They're very good players and to play with them, it's so good."
