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Arsenal free to sign striker for £40m – will Wenger sanction deal?

By on July 27, 2016

According to the Mirror, Lyon have made it clear to Arsenal that we can sign Alexandre Lacazette for £40m + bonuses but will Arsene Wenger sanction the deal?

The boss is currently searching the transfer market trying to find a top class striker to offer support to Olivier Giroud this season after we were snubbed by top target Jamie Vardy last month.

We’ve had to sit back and miss out on the likes of Alvaro Morata and Gonzalo Higuain in recent weeks but Lacazette has emerged as a key target with widespread reports linking us with a move for the French international.

It looked like our pursuit was set to end in disappointment once again as Lyon released a statement on Tuesday revealing that they had rejected a £29m offer from Arsenal and insisted they wanted to keep hold of the 25-year-old.

The Mirror quote the Ligue 1 club as saying:

“The truth is that Arsenal made a formal offer of €35m (£29m) to which Lyon have not responded for this one reason: Lyon will keep Lacazette, who is irreplaceable and one of the leading players in Bruno Genesio’s squad.”

However, the Mirror claim that despite these protestations, Lyon have actually already informed Arsenal that they will sell Lacazette if we pay £40m plus additional performance-related bonuses.

Apparently, the French club made this clear to Arsenal BEFORE we tabled our opening £29m bid, so clearly Wenger was low-balling them to see how serious their asking price was, but let’s assume that Lyon will refuse to do business for anything less than the £40m the Mirror are claiming….will Arsene sanction the move?

We desperately need a striker in fast as Giroud and Sanchez are expected to miss the Liverpool game leaving Theo Walcott as our only senior option up front. However, the sad fact is our options are running out.

There is a real lack of top class strikers on the market and while we can all dream of a Benzema or an Aubameyang, the reality is they aren’t going to sign for Arsenal this summer so perhaps Lacazette is the best we can hope for.

The Frenchman scored 23 goals last season and 31 the season before, so he certainly knows where the goal is. He’s quick, powerful and makes intelligent runs, so on the face of it he’d be a great addition to the squad.

In today’s market, he’s probably worth the £40m Lyon are reportedly demanding. If Benteke is worth £32m and Michy Batshuayi £33m, then Lacazette should be worth £40m.

MORE: Arsenal eyeing defensive duo as Wenger confirms intent to buy

The big concern is the fact he’s yet to prove himself outside of France. I’d personally love to see us go for Lukaku but Everton are asking for north of £60m which is just crazy money for the Belgian.

We could take a punt on someone like Ben Yedder but I think Lacazette is probably the best option overall, so let’s hope Wenger is prepared to do what it takes to bring him to the Emirates. And let’s also hope he does it quickly!