Alexandre Lacazette – Should he stay or should he go?

Alexandre Lacazette
Alexandre Lacazette – should he stay or should he go?

By Tom Masters

It is well documented that Alexandre Lacazette is in the final year of his Arsenal contract meaning clubs can sign him on a free for next season and negotiate from January.
 
The key question for Arsenal fans is, should he be kept on, or allowed to go without picking up a transfer fee next summer? 
 
At 30 years-old, Lacazette definitely still has a few more seasons left in the tank, but whether Mikel Arteta believes those years are to be spent at the Emirates remains to be seen.

This season

Lacazette has featured on two occasions in the Premier League for the Gunners this season, on both occasions from the bench. 

Whilst he also converted from the spot in the 3-0 win over AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup as well as getting on the scoresheet against West Brom in the 6-0 thrashing at the Hawthorns. 
 
It appears Arteta has opted to go for youth, utilising a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Martin Odegaard all preferred to the Frenchman, whilst Nicholas Pépé and Gabriel Martinelli are also forward options. 
 
Add to that list young forward Eddie Nketiah, and there is an abundance of talent in the attacking areas for Arteta, perhaps making Lacazette one of the more expendable ones. 
 
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang appears to have fully regained the trust of Arteta after scoring against Tottenham in the 3-1 North London derby win, whilst he also found the net in the 1-0 win over Norwich.

Other options

All of this would suggest that Lacazette’s days at the Emirates could be numbered, supported by the transfer rumours that Arsenal want to sign Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Ollie Watkins.
 
However, his record for the Gunners is something that they can rely on. 

The former Lyon forward has scored 50 Premier League goals and assisted 18 times in 130 appearances, a record which, whilst not incredible, does suggest that Lacazette can at least act as an able deputy to Aubameyang. 
 
Furthermore, in his four Premier League seasons, Lacazette has scored at least 10 goals in each season, with 14 his best effort, which again suggests he can act as an able deputy for Arsenal both when injury problems hit and during the cup competitions.

Finances

Another reason for keeping Lacazette at the Emirates perhaps comes from a financial point of view.

If Aubameyang is to be the first-choice striker for Arsenal, then perhaps the significant amount of money that it would cost to replace Lacazette could be better placed elsewhere? The holding midfield position for example. 
 
Of course, if Lacazette is not offered a new contract by Arsenal sooner rather than later, he would be leaving for free, meaning that Arsenal would lose out on any form of compensation for the French forward. 
 
The jury remains out, over whether it makes sense for Arsenal to keep hold of Lacazette, who is now in the final year of the five-year contract he signed when he joined back in 2016.
 
One thing is certain. Should Lacazette depart, it would suggest that Arsenal will almost definitely be forced into the transfer market to find a replacement – whether that will be their choice or the Frenchman's will be seen in the coming months.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

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