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Arsenal: Just When Lucas Perez Looked To Have Relevance
By Josh Sippie
Arsenal has a surplus in the most unlikely of places – striker. So much so that yet again, Lucas Perez’s place is in question thanks to Danny Welbeck.
Arsenal’s match against Burnley was thrilling. Despite the lackluster win, it was still a win and hardly even lackluster really, as Burnley’s defense is known for being incredibly stout.
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Still, offensive reinforcements were needed and when the time came, Arsene Wenger turned to Danny Welbeck as his choice of replacement. With Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain on the bench and Walcott due back soon, Lucas Perez might well not even have crossed hismind.
We all kind of knew this would happen, though. The Spaniard took a while to get settled, mainly because he wasn’t playing, but it was always a matter of time before Danny Welbeck came back and resumed his seat as the favorite project in Wenger’s eyes.
There is just so much more attached to Welbeck – his outcast status from, United, his amazing raw talent and his versatile skill set.
He is the Zeus to Lucas’s Apollo.
The sad part about this is that I know we were all starting to really enjoy what Lucas had to offer. He was starting to show fantastic link-up play and his passing and shooting was on point against Bournemouth. That kind of talent is always welcomed at Arsenal, but we have to wonder where he fits now.
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Is it out wide? Perhaps his best chance is to shoot for relevance out on the wings, but that isn’t why he came to North London. Plus, with the Ox and Walcott both looking to break through on the wings as well – and both are higher on the totem pole than Lucas – that future isn’t the most likely either.
It may be a matter of hoping that the Gunners can stay in secondary competitions. The FA Cup is going to be his stage and if we are bounced from that, well, that’s just too bad.
I can’t see him sustaining too much relevance in the Premier League. Not with the need to give the Ox consistent time, lest we lose him. Not with Wenger’s love of Walcott. And not with Alexis pushed out wide to accommodate Giroud. It just does not look favorable, despite how much he has proven that he belongs recently.
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There’s still hope though. There’s always hope. We will see him in either the FA Cup or EPL fixture this weekend and he will be well aware of what’s at stake.