Arsenal will not consider offering Alexandre Lacazette a new long-term, but are supposedly considering a short-term contract.
The Frenchman has earned his place back in the first-team with a number of impressive displays, but his future remains uncertain with less than 12 months remaining on his current deal.
Many news sources seem to believe that the forward is already being lined up to be replaced, seemingly believing the writing is on the wall for his future to be played out somewhere else next term, but anybody who has been watching closely this season will know how important he has been to our upturn in fortunes.
The club must now decide whether they really believe that they would be better off allowing him to leave, while they would seemingly be forced to buy a new addition to take his place in the squad.
Another option could well be to extend the 30 year-old’s stay, and allow our captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to leave instead, which would still mean that a new option would be needed to lead the line, which I believe the fans are desperate to see.
The issue with trying to tie Laca down to only a short-term deal however, as The Athletic (via the Daily Mail) states is being considered, is the likelihood that he will have better offers from other clubs, with foreign sides allowed to table their own offers in the new year ahead of a potential free transfer at the end of the term.
He does seem to be happy when seen on the pitch however, and I can’t say I’ve heard anything behind the scenes to say any different about his life as a whole, so maybe he would be more than happy to sign a new deal, even if there was just one or two more years on the table.
Patrick