Arsenal: Aubameyang does not mean Lacazette’s end

Signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has raised questions regarding Alexandre Lacazette’s future at Arsenal. But I don’t believe that the two are mutually exclusive; the arrival of the former does not necessitate the end of the latter.

The signing of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was somewhat of a surprise. Arsenal don’t really make big-name signings, and they don’t much bigger than this, literally. There are 23 letters in his name.

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And with his arrival, breaking the club transfer record thanks to a £56 million fee, which, in this day and age, is actually a very good price for a striker of his calibre, reputation, ability and record, there are questions surrounding both his role in the team and his ramifications on those around him, particularly the use of Alexandre Lacazette.

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The two are very similar players. Natural-born goalscorers. Poachers. Finishers. Sharp, speedy movers. And Arsene Wenger, ever since the introduction of Cesc Fabregas and the slow departure of Dennis Bergkamp from the first-team outlook, has tended to use a lone-striker-based formation, whether that be with a back four or back three. In his current mindset, there doesn’t seem to be room for two strikers, especially two strikers with so many similarities.

That is a point that Jamie Carragher was keen to make on Sky Sports’  The Debate on Thursday night. Here is what he said:

"“I can’t help thinking that with Aubameyang coming in, there is no way he can form a partnership with Lacazette at all. They both look like penalty-box strikers. I could actually see Lacazette moving on in the summer”"

Carragher certainly makes a valid argument, and it is one that many others have agreed with also. But there is an acute difference between both Lacazette and Aubameyang and a thoroughly ‘penalty-box striker’, as he puts it: Intelligence.

Lacazette and Aubameyang are more than just goalscorers. They are most certainly that, but they also have an awareness, an in-game understanding, a spatial creativity and positional versatility that few other out-and-out strikers have. Essentially, they have the smarts to be able to play either as a lone striker, as a part of a pair, or even as an inside-forward as Wenger may field one or the other from time to time.

While they may come alive in the penalty area — of Aubameyang’s 98 Bundesliga goals, 97 have come from inside the penalty area; Lacazette has scored just one goal from outside the penalty area this season –, that does not mean that they are limited to such styles and strategies. They bring more to the table than just goals, and much of what they offer is because of their intelligence.

Their movement, for example, is not just for goalscoring’s sake. It creates space, it changes passing lanes, it alters the angles at which the midfield can play. Their touches, their hold-up play, their interlinking passing moves are not just so that they can get themselves in front of goal. They are so that the team can better create and score goals. It just so happens that it is often them that is making the net ripple.

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Neither Aubameyang nor Lacazette are as limited as Carragher claims them to be. And that is why they can both co-exist in the same team. It may seem cramped and overly-crowded. But it doesn’t have to be. These are intelligent, aware footballers, and they have the ability to play alongside one another.