Arsenal: Alexandre Lacazette has found his guardian angel

Arsenal fans were resigned to see Alexandre Lacazette leave this summer, but his biggest obstacle has become his guardian angel.

A mere two, maybe three months ago, Arsenal seemed to have written off the chances of Alexandre Lacazette. He hadn’t scored a goal in weeks, he wasn’t gelling with the team, and worst of all, and most indicative of his struggles, he wasn’t taking the chances he had.

It all started with the atrocious chipped attempt against Southampton and spiraled from there. Confidence was gone, he wasn’t himself, and then Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and the injury happened.

Just like that, you could hear a pin drop when Lacazette was brought up. Why would he stay at a club that had preemptively replaced him after his acclimation process sputtered to a grinding halt?

Only the exact opposite is now proving to be the case. Aubameyang looked like he was going to be the kiss of death for his French counterpart. How could Arsene Wenger (and whoever comes next) possibly conceive of sitting Aubameyang for Lacazette?

They couldn’t, and they wouldn’t. But they don’t have to. Because Aubameyang has in fact turned out to be the kiss of life for Lacazette. He is the most unlikely guardian angel.

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I don’t know how it happened. I like to believe it was constructed, but maybe it was just fate, luck, good fortune, and a bit of professionalism. Who knows. But the future now couldn’t be clearer for the two of these strikers, and Lacazette is making the biggest impact of them all, as his confidence is now off the charts.

It all started against Stoke City. Having scored just one goal since Christmas, Lacazette was in the throes of concern. But when a penalty was given and Aubameyang passed up the chance at a hat trick to allow his struggling team mate a chance to get back on the score sheet, everything changed.

Then there was West Ham. Lacazette found himself suffocated all match, but around the hour-mark, when Aubameyang came on, everything changed. Aubameyang was out to free up Lacazette and he did his usual thing, setting up his team mate for an assist before even seeking his own attempt at goal.

These two have struck up a clear partnership, and the effects of it have clearly had their effect on Lacazette as well, as his passed up attempt on goal that turned into a chance for Granit Xhaka seemed like something Aubameyang would do for Lacazette.

Even being pushed out wide, Aubameyang is flourishing at Arsenal, and he is using this to help Lacazette flourish as well, and for someone of Lacazette’s abilities, you really don’t need much of an urging to get your arse back into gear.

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This is beautiful for the future, these two together. It is very, very similar to the budding partnership behind them of Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Mesut Ozil. Football is a game of partnerships, and, go figure, when you put this many quality players on the pitch together, they start to figure out who is worthy of their looks and their passes.

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