Arsenal: Alexandre Lacazette praised by the man he’s chasing

Thierry Henry has heralded the talent of Alexandre Lacazette, stating that he expects him to have success with Arsenal this season. For Lacazette, such comments come from the very man that he is trying to replicate, even if different they play with contrasting styles.

Arsenal signed Alexandre Lacazette to solve their striking issues. Ever since the departure of Robin van Persie in the summer of 2012, the Gunners have lacked the prolific, clinical centre-forward that is required to fire the team to a genuine and sustained title challenge.

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The hope is that the former Lyon striker can now provide a lethal option to spearhead a creative and fluid midfield. He will certainly benefit from the number of chances that will be on offer to him at the Emirates. But there have been concerns regarding the step up to the Premier League, having just played in France, and the fact that Olivier Giroud is considered ahead of him for the French national team is also a worry.

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Nevertheless, Thierry Henry believes that Lacazette will flourish at his former club, having seen him progress through the ranks at the youth levels in France, backing him to have a good first season:

"“He did it in the French league and people might say it’s a different league but, with due respect to Lyon, he’ll also be with better players. I’m backing him to have a good season I’m a big fan of him. I saw him playing for a long time in the French league and in the youth team. He was always a talent that everyone was waiting for him to grow into, and to be fair he did, he’s been scoring goals every season.”"

And they are significant comments from Henry. Ultimately, while their style may be different — Henry is a pacier, more technical player who is willing and wanting to be more involved with play, whereas Lacazette is far happier to simply stab home the service that he is given –, the goalscoring success that Henry enjoyed is what Lacazette is aiming for.

Such is the significance of being the club-record signing, if he was unable to at least offer a similar attacking output, at least in terms of goals, as the great man, then he would be considered a disappointment. Lacazette should be chasing down 20 league goals this season. Anything less would be falling short.

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Whether the Frenchman can replicate the King or not, only time will tell. Wenger certainly hopes so, such was his willingness to splash the cash on his services. But there are doubts and concerns that must be answered first. Here’s hoping that Henry’s seeing past those is vindicated.