da bet esporte： A Deadline Day swoop for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang bred some real positivity back into the Emirates Stadium, but Arsenal’s big-money transfer deal with Borussia Dortmund is not without complications.
da esoccer bet： Marking the second time Arsene Wenger has committed to spending a club-record fee on a striker in as many transfer windows, the Frenchman must find a way to get the best out of the two most expensive signings in the club’s history who both want to play in the same position – the single striker slot at the tip of Arsenal’s attack.
So, what options are Arsenal faced with? Should one striker be sacrificed, could both fit into the same starting XI and who would have a better impact from out wide?
Football FanCast outline four suggested solutions to the Gunners’ striker conundrum and then give you the power to decide what Wenger must do next.
Solution A – Drop Lacazette
The early signs suggest this is already Wenger’s preferred strategy, having left the France international on the bench during the 5-1 win over Everton last weekend. The former Lyon front-man hasn’t exactly set the world alight since moving to the Emirates Stadium last summer and Aubameyang is undoubtedly the more proven goalscorer at this moment in time.
That being said, Lacazette will inevitably feel hard done by; across all competitions, he’s been allowed the full ninety minutes on just eight occasions this season and has averaged one goal or assist every 162 minutes – a decent return for a striker amid his first campaign in the Premier League. Lacazette will argue he’s worked hard all season and doesn’t deserve to be dropped just because Aubameyang has a larger price-tag.
Solution B – Play Aubameyang and Lacazette as a front two
It would certainly catch a few people off guard – there aren’t many teams who play two up front in the Premier League these days. But when you have two strikers who both cost club-record transfer fees, why not use that to your advantage by playing them alongside each other? Whether it’s in a 3-5-2 or a 4-4-2, opposition defences will struggle to nullify the penetrative threat and predatory instincts Lacazette and Aubameyang both provide.
The counter-argument, however, is how two central strikers would disrupt the balance of the team, especially in a 4-4-2 that would leave the midfield incredibly open, and could require sacrificing other key players in deeper positions.
Solution C – Play Lacazette out wide
Lacazette was often employed in wider roles during the early stages of his career so it wouldn’t be completely new ground for him. His pace alone will have an impact on the flanks, especially when Arsenal are counter-attacking, and not playing centrally will give him licence to ghost into the box and finish off moves with late runs. But that does seem like a real waste of a striker Transfermarkt value at £49.5million and his returns out wide for Lyon weren’t exactly resounding; 13 goals and 16 assists in 62 appearances.
Likewise, although Lacazette has shown this season that he’s willing to run himself into the ground for the sake of the team, playing out wide to compensate for another striker will inevitably get under his skin.
Solution D – Play Aubameyang out wide
It’s perhaps a bizarre way to use your club-record striker signing, but Aubameyang does have a stronger scoring record from wide positions than Lacazette, netting 39 times and grabbing 23 assists from his 100 outings on the right flank for St. Etienne, Monaco, Lille and Borussia Dortmund. He’s got the aerial threat to be more of a nuisance at the far post than Lacazette as well, measuring in at 6 foot 2, but the real problem is the politics of the situation.
How exactly do you tell one of the world’s top goalscorers that he’s going to be spending the early stages of his Arsenal career on the wing? The last time he played regularly there was during the 2013/14 season – back when he was competing with Robert Lewandowski to lead the line for Borussia Dortmund.
So, Arsenal fans, how would you solve this striker conundrum? Let us know by voting below…
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