Lacazette reveals inspiration behind 'dream' Arsenal switch

Dom Farrell

Lacazette reveals inspiration behind 'dream' Arsenal switch image

Alexandre Lacazette hopes to follow in the footsteps of Thierry Henry at Arsenal after becoming the Premier League club's record signing.

Lacazette completes Arsenal move

Lacazette completed his much-anticipated switch from Lyon to Emirates Stadium on Wednesday for a fee reported to be in the region of €60million.

The 26-year-old France striker has long followed Arsenal's progress from his homeland due to the exploits of Henry and other Les Bleus stars in London.

"I am, of course. delighted and very proud too because Arsenal is a legendary club," Lacazette, who admires the club's "stability" under Arsene Wenger, told the Gunners' official website.

"Throughout my childhood, thanks to Thierry Henry and other French players, I always dreamed of playing for this club so that dream has been fulfilled.

How Arsenal could line up with Lacazette

"[I like] Arsenal's past – I like clubs with a history. Also the fact that the manager has been here for a while shows it is a stable club, which I like.

Lacazette

"In addition, there are quite a few French players here, which makes it easier to settle in.

"In my opinion, Arsenal is also the club that plays the best football in England so I really wanted to play here."

Lacazette arrives in the Premier League after a prolific return of 37 goals across 45 matches in 2016-17 helped Lyon to fourth place in Ligue 1 and a run to the semi-finals of the Europa League.

"When I play I like to use my pace to link up with my team-mates. As a forward, I like to score goals of course, but that not all that I'm about," he said when discussing his style of play.

Unique Naby Keita worth record fee

"Every time I take a shot at goal it's because I believe I can score. I don't just shoot for the sake of it.

"I also try to keep as calm as possible. All that is achieved by a lot of hard work in training."

Lacazette added: "I want to give 100 per cent in every match. I want to show I'm worthy of the shirt. I want to do everything I can to make sure we win titles." 

Dom Farrell

Dom Farrell Photo

Dom is the senior content producer for Sporting News UK. He previously worked as fan brands editor for Manchester City at Reach Plc. Prior to that, he built more than a decade of experience in the sports journalism industry, primarily for the Stats Perform and Press Association news agencies. Dom has covered major football events on location, including the entirety of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup in Paris and St Petersburg respectively, along with numerous high-profile Premier League, Champions League and England international matches. Cricket and boxing are his other major sporting passions and he has covered the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Gennadiy Golovkin and Vasyl Lomachenko live from ringside.