Arsenal vs Napoli: It had to be Alexandre Lacazette

Arsenal needed one goal to put this match to bed, and Alexandre Lacazette simply had to be the guy to do it, didn’t he?

It’s not every often that the release of a starting XI gets the Arsenal fanbase buzzing in a good way. Often times it involves a lot of swearing and even more question marks, but you couldn’t find a sour comment regarding this XI.

And it was because that fear of trying to defend a 2-0 lead took a major blow when it was revealed that Unai Emery was going to go for it, not just sit back and cling on to dear life. Although, in hindsight, it looks like that might have worked as well.

Still, what Emery was investing in was clear – one goal and this match became something else. Napoli went from having to score two goals to preserve it, to having to score four. That’s a hefty ask of any team, needless to say.

Arsenal threatened a lot early on, but it wasn’t until the 35th minute that they had their big chance. A foul that upended Alexandre Lacazette 25 yards from goal gave them a free shot at putting the tie to bed.

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Without a second of hesitation, Alexandre Lacazette decided he was going to take it himself. We’d seen this before, in the 5-1 win over Bournemouth. It was much different stakes, but the layout was the same. Lacazette stepped up with complete confidence and essentially told everyone else to get away, because it was his.

Yet again, that impulse proved 100% correct, as Lacazette dispelled all doubts and whipped the ball into the back of the net, which put the match to bed in the 35th minute.

And it couldn’t have played out any other way, could it? Once Lacazette asserts himself on a situation, he rarely ever disappoints. He’s that clutch of a dude, and he has been for awhile. The table was set, he had the entire team on his shoulders, and he didn’t leave any room for question.

This was a huge win for the Gunners as a whole, and for Lacazette as an individual, who had been in the smallest of ruts lately.

Lacazette has been our Player of the Season at every step this year. I would wager that there has been no doubt whatsoever, and this is why. Because when you actually need it, when you need someone to step up and get the job done, who would you rather call?