Arsenal: Alexandre Lacazette mind games no longer funny

Arsenal seemed to be set to land Alexandre Lacazette at long last, but now Lyon have struck up the mind games yet again. It’s just not funny anymore.

Arsenal has never been this close to landing Alexandre Lacazette. For three full years they have been linked to him, yet every year the same course of events derails the move from actually happening.

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First, Lacazette says he wants to leave. Then Arsenal make an underwhelming bid that is quickly rejected. Finally, Lyon owner Jean-Michel Aulas says that Lacazette will cost more than that and the Gunners never buck up. This process also involves plenty of mind games from Aulas, who seems to raise the price on Lacazette every time a bid is made.

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This summer looked different. After agreeing on a move to Atletico Madrid, Lacazette’s move was foiled when their transfer ban was upheld. This lead to the price for the Frenchman being revealed and countless reliable sources indicating that talks were underway between Arsenal and Lyon.

What could possibly get in the way of that?

Well, the answer to that is quite simple. Aulas has started up the mind games again and declared that Lacazette isn’t actually going to move this summer after all.

In past years, I’d let out an annoyed chuckle here, because this happens every single year. This is what Lyon do, they build up players and then sell them off at a massive profit.

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But for whatever reason, it isn’t that easy with Lacazette. Aulas seems determined to make the sale of the striker more difficult than performing oral surgery on an un-sedated crocodile (Aulas’s buffoonery has my analogies out of whack).

It’s time to stop these stupid mind games. We can’t know at exactly what step in the transfer process this potential move is currently at, but if the price has been revealed, a price that Lyon agreed to, isn’t it just a matter of paying that price and being done with it?

The longer this deal goes without being done, the more discouraging it will become for all parties. Aulas is preying on those fears, undoubtedly hoping that the pressure will push Wenger to capitulate and pay the price that was requested in the first place.

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The last thing we need is for this to go awry, but the mind games are the start of such an unpleasant outcome.