Seven interesting facts about Arsenal target Alexandre Lacazette

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  • Arsenal have been heavily linked to Lyon’s star striker Alexandre Lacazette this summer.

    Various reports claim that the Premier League club are in talks with the French side to sign the 26-year-old in a deal said to be in the region of £44 million.

    Here are seven facts you need to know about the Ligue 1 hitman.

    A MAINSTAY IN LIGUE 1 TEAM OF THE SEASON

    Lacazette has been one of the best players in the French league for the last few seasons and the fact that he made all of the last three Teams of the Season speaks volumes.

    He is one of only three players to have made the cut in the last three years with Paris Saint-Germain duo Marco Verratti and Thiago Silva being the other two.

    BROKE LYON’S GOAL RECORD

    Having joined Lyon’s ranks at the age of 10, Lacazette has gone on to write his name in the record books at the club. He’s grown into a proven goal-scorer and part of that journey was breaking the club’s goal-scoring record for single season when he plundered 27 goals in the 2014-15 campaign.

    He then broke his own record in the recent 2016-17 season, scoring 28 goals and becoming Lyon’s fourth highest scorer of all-time in the process.


    COMPARED TO THIERRY HENRY

    Several quick and promising young forwards in France have been likened to Thierry Henry and Lacazette is no different. It’s not a comparison that will go away either if he signs for Arsenal.

    Lyon’s president Jean-Michel Aulas was the one who first made the comparison a couple of years ago claiming, “He’s our version of a young Thierry Henry.”

    The great man himself responded with admiration at the striker’s goal-scoring.

    “What he is doing is extraordinary,” the Arsenal legend stated.

    CAPPED AT ALL YOUTH LEVELS FOR FRANCE

    The Frenchman was always good enough to be involved in the national set-up but took a while to establish himself as a clinical finisher.

    As such, he didn’t burst into the senior side as a teenage sensation but instead climbed every rung on his way there, appearing for his country at every youth level all the way from the U16s to the U21s.

    He made his senior debut in 2013 vs Uruguay as a 22-year-old.

    YOUNGEST OF FOUR BOYS

    Lacazette grew up with three older brothers. One of them, Benoît, played in the Swiss second division and French fourth division and coached the futsal club Lyon Footzik Futsal.

    His cousin Romuald Lacazette is also a professional footballer and plays in midfield for the second division Bundesliga side 1860 Munich. He has earned caps for the France under-18 team.

    PACE IN FIFA 17

    The Lyon striker is all about pace in behind and lethal finishing. At only 5ft 9in, he doesn’t offer much of an aerial threat and relies on his speed.

    However, fun fact, he isn’t as quick as you would think in FIFA 17. The game rates his speed at only 86, a dip from the 88 he was given in FIFA 16. With 2018 edition of the game set to release in a couple of months, it’ll be interesting to see how fast he will be.

    ARSENAL

    If you ask Arsene Wenger, he’ll probably tell you that he’s know of Lacazette since he was seven years old. However, as far as we know, Arsenal were first linked with the forward back in 2014.

    At the time, Theo Walcott was sidelined for six months through injury and Lacazette was seen as a worthy replacement.

    Some of his coaches then likened him to Brazil striker Sonny Anderson. And, get this, he was valued at mere £7.5 million.

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