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Thoughts on Alexandre Lacazette’s Knee Injury
Can you actually believe that we have just 11 games left in the Premier League this season? It’s amazing how time flies in this division, and I must say, it has been yet another frustrating campaign for Arsenal. The fans were used to finishing in the top four all these years and it became a bare minimum in terms of expectations but after finishing in fifth place last season, one must have thought that the Gunners would do enough to at least challenge for the title or something, but shamefully, the Gunners are a whopping 27 points behind Manchester City and eight points behind fourth placed Chelsea.
The potential for yet another campaign outside the top four is looming but the team’s cause isn’t helped with the recent update that top scorer (yes, with nine goals), Alexandre Lacazette will be out for four to six weeks due to an ongoing knee problem that required him to go under the knife. The club’s website released an official statement,
“The minor procedure was a success and he will now undergo a period of rehabilitation. It is envisaged that he will return to the squad within four to six weeks.”
With the likes of Olivier Giroud and Theo Walcott shipped out to other Premier League clubs, Arsenal is left with their new record signing, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Danny Welbeck as the only senior center forwards in the team. The likes of Eddie Nketiah and Chuba Akpom are still waiting in the ranks to stake a claim for first team action but they are far from ready.
Lacazette’s time in the club has been bittersweet so far with the initial buzz surrounding his arrival and his debut goal after 94 seconds against Leicester City. He had such a good start to his Arsenal career and I strongly believe that the constant substitutions for Olivier Giroud didn’t help his cause. With Giroud suffering an injury layoff, Lacazette managed to play for 90 minutes but he failed to influence most of his games. I will still need to cut him some slack as he’s playing in a different league and that requires some adapting to do, but many expected better from the French forward.
I’m quite unhappy about the timing of Lacazette’s injury, as it has come at a time when he needed some goals to improve his confidence, falling his horror show at Wembley as well as Arsene Wenger’s comments about how Aubameyang’s arrival affected his confidence. With Lacazette injured, Arsenal will need Danny Welbeck to come up with the goods in the Europa League, while Aubameyang would lead the charge for the fourth place finish we remain hopeful for.
I wish Lacazette the very best and hope he recovers swiftly as we need his services for the remainder of what’s left of the season.
Sayonara.
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Arsenal Sign Alexandre Lacazette from Lyon
The Arsenal blogosphere was on fire as fans celebrated the arrival of the club’s record signing, Alexandre Lacazette, from Olympique Lyonnais.
Arsene Wenger had some nice words to say about his new recruit,
“We are very happy to have Alexandre join our group. He has shown over a number of years that he can score goals and that he is a very efficient finisher. As well, he has very interesting technical qualities and a strong character. So he is a guy who is a great addition for us, and someone who will help us challenge at the top level this season.”
The player went on to say the basics you’d from any new signing, about how he always dreamt of playing for the club,
“I am, of course, delighted and very proud too because Arsenal is a legendary club. Throughout my childhood, thanks to Thierry Henry and other French players, I always dreamed of playing for this club so today that dream has been fulfilled.”
Footballers and their dreams. At least, he didn’t get any message from the little boy inside him. Maybe he did and chose not to talk about it. Signing a player of Lacazette’s caliber speaks a lot about Arsenal’s aspirations this season, and it seems like Wenger isn’t done, with the Express reporting that the Gunners are interested in signing Riyad Mahrez from Leicester City. There’s also the business of sorting out the contracts for Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil among others but the progress being made this summer can be measured considerably.
With Sead Kolasinac coming in early, as well as some changes in the backroom staff, which includes Jens Lehmann, Arsenal has plans for big things this season, and we the fans are elated with the capture of our shiny new toy, Alex Lacazette. He will join the lads in training and will travel for some preseason action.
He’s set to make his unofficial home debut towards the end of the month when the Gunners host their Emirates Cup tournament. He would have memories of playing at the Emirates, as he was part of the Lyon team that got spanked 5-0 by the Gunners a couple of seasons ago.
I wish Lacazette the very best and I hope the goals flow in for him.
Here’s a highlight reel of his 37 goals for Lyon last season
Sayonara
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Alexandre Lacazette Completes Medical Ahead of Arsenal Move
After quite a protracted saga, it seems like Alexandre Lacazette is finally in the bag.
He was believed to arrive at London yesterday for a medical with Arsenal which was completed as well, according to the Guardian. The French forward is set to be Arsenal’s record signing with a deal believed to have cost £52.7m, surpassing what the Gunners paid for Mesut Ozil in 2013. I’m very certain that the 888sport free betting offer for Alex Lacazette to finish as the highest goal scorer in the league would be high, but you’d have to visit the site out and check for the odds,
Lacazette would say goodbye to the club he served with distinction for eight years, scoring 129 goals in 275 appearances. His last four seasons with Olympique Lyonnais have been very prolific with the Frenchman hitting the target an astonishing 37 times, including that this awesome strike against Roma that was followed with a stone cold celebration…
Lacazette would know that there would be high expectations of him and in a club like Arsenal, he’s sure to receive a boatload of passes from one of the most creative midfields in the Premier League. His move has been met with mixed emotions but avid watchers of the game would know that Arsenal have landed a very good forward that would lead the line for years to come. He would also want to join the League ofEextraordinary French Forwards like Nicolas Anelka, Thierry Henry and Slyvain Wiltord that etched their names in Arsenal folklore for their performances on the pitch.
I’m also very elated with the fact that we will no longer get any updates from Lyon’s chairman, Jean-Michel Aulas. That bloke turned to some really annoying Lacazette live commentary expert, feeding the world with all sorts of news that in come cases were relevant, and in others, pretty not,
Monday: ‘Lacazette wants to leave Lyon’
Tuesday: ‘I had dinner with Arsene Wenger and Ivan Gazidis. The steak at the diner in London was superb’
Wednesday: ‘I have told Arsenal that Atletico paid a gazillion pounds for Lacazette. That transfer ban on them was a real bitch’
Thursday: ‘Have I told you guys that Lacazette wants to leave? Oh wait, I think I need a swap deal for Olivier Giroud’
Friday: ‘Bleeeeeh, Arsenal has told me that they can’t match what Atletico offered and they want to keep Giroud too’
Saturday: ‘I should travel to Russia ahead of the Confederations Cup final. Maybe I can use the money Arsenal offered me for Lacazette to sign Alexis Sanchez.’
Sunday: ‘The cat is out of the bag guys. I mummified Lacazette and sent him on a plane to London. Don’t worry, birds would not attack the plane like Princess Ahmanet’.
All we can do is wait for the imminent announcement on Arsenal’s official website, then Lacazette would come out to say that the LITTLE BOY INSIDE HIM wanted him to come to Arsenal.
Sayonara
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