Alexandre Lacazette hasn’t lived up to expectations at Arsenal, and now that he’s drawing negative attention, it’s time for the Gunners to move on.
Alexandre Lacazette’s Arsenal career should have gone a lot better than it has. The £48 million signing from Lyon, who was Arsenal’s club-record transfer at the time, has only managed to score 14 and 13 Premier League goals respectively in his 2 full seasons, and the Gunners even signed another striker in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang just 6 months after bringing Lacazette in.
It’s safe to say that while he is most certainly a good player who has brought a lot to the table, he hasn’t exactly lived up to his price tag, especially for someone who should be in the prime of his career right now. He is in no better position in his career than he was when he joined the club nearly 3 years ago.
Lacazette seems surplus to requirements at the Emirates, especially with Mikel Arteta actually favoring Eddie Nketiah in the number 9 in some Premier League fixtures before the delay, with Aubameyang on the left-wing.
This week, Lacazette has put himself in a bit of trouble, with the Sun releasing footage of him ‘inhaling balloons’, which is another word for nitrous oxide or ‘hippy crack’.
I don’t think the main problem in this Lacazette drama is that he is doing balloons, the problem is that he has been caught doing it more than one time. That is a huge worry. That’s why there could be consequences.
— Eduardo Hagn (@EduardoHagn) May 16, 2020
When Arsenal was asked for comment, they answered with the following:
"“This is a private matter which we are taking seriously. It will be handled internally.”"
While we won’t go into too much detail over the seriousness of using this substance, it’s clear that it does not line up with the standards Arsenal expects of their players, especially during a time when they should be looking to regain their match-fitness in preparation for the season restart.
While he is a strong finisher, Lacazette’s lack of pace and size has caused him to struggle in the Premier League.
Lacazette’s Arsenal future was already in jeopardy before this incident, but it seems this could speed the process forward significantly. The Frenchman is simply making far too much money in comparison to his output, and Arsenal would be better off putting faith in their youngsters and strengthening in other positions from the money they could make off of him.