With Arsenal facing our London rivals and the current Premier League title holders Chelsea in China today, most Arsenal fans will expect to see the new striker signing Alexandre Lacazette in the starting line-up and probably in the centre forward position that he used to occupy for Lyon.
We will be hoping to see him score again as well, because after he found the back of the net just 15 minutes into his Arsenal debut against Sydney FC, the new Gunner has drawn a blank in his next two matches and after Arsene Wenger broke the club’s transfer record to sign him this summer we really want to see Lacazette settle in and start to bang in the goals on a regular basis.
However, another recruit from the French Ligue 1, Robert Pires, who now works as a coach for Arsenal, thinks we fans may need to have a little patience with the new forward, a BBC report explains. Pires knows from his own experience that English football is different to that played in France and it took him a good few months to adapt, but he does think that Lacazette will turn out to be a good addition for the Gunners.
He said, “I think he’ll be a success. But maybe he will need time to adapt.
“He is a good striker who has scored a lot of goals with Lyon. Of course it will be very difficult in the beginning because when you play in France and move to England it is not the same, it is very aggressive.
“Maybe he will need time for the adaptation but everyone around him is very important, especially the French connection.
“But to make the adaption, to find the rhythm and the tempo, for me it took six or seven months. It was very tough, for me it was the aggression and intensity.”
I am not so sure I agree with Pires because Lacazette is already known for his work rate and tenacity and should be more suited to the English game. We could certainly do with him having an impact from the start because Arsenal cannot afford to wait six months for Lacazette to find his feet if we are to have a chance of this season’s EPL trophy.
Bob.