Ligue 1 Expert Reveals Arsene Wenger Has Been Following Alexandre Lacazette For 10 Years

By The Editor
on 4th July 2017

Alexandre Lacazette’s Arsenal move has been 10 years in the making…

“#Arsenal have been watching Lacazette for 10 years”@LaurensJulien on how Arsene Wenger kept changing his mind on the Lyon striker: pic.twitter.com/ljdlJh3YxG

— BBC 5 live Sport (@5liveSport) July 3, 2017

Ligue 1 expert Julien Laurens has revealed that Arsene Wenger first scouted Alexandre Lacazette 10 years ago as a 16-year-old.

The French forward is set to finally make the move to north London with just an announcement pending of the arrival, and many have been wondering why it’s taken so long.

Wenger seems to have first dibs when it comes to talent emanating from France given his reputation, but he seemed reluctant to pull the trigger on Lacazette.

According to Laurens, Wenger had been sceptical for a number of years about his overall ability, but that he was convinced by Lacazette’s sensational campaign last term.

The 26-year-old netted 37 times in all competitions and also registered the best chance conversion rate in Europe’s top five leagues.

“The first time that Gilles Grimandi, the former Arsenal player and French scout for Arsenal, went to see Alexandre Lacazette on behalf of Arsene Wenger and Arsenal was 10 years ago when Lacazette was 16,” the French journalist told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“For those 10 years they’ve looked at him so many times, year after year, not always convinced. Sometimes it was a yes, sometimes it was a ‘we’re not sure’ let’s wait a little bit more.

“This summer, finally, Wenger is convinced that this is the right time for him to come to Arsenal.”

Let’s hope it’s 11th time lucky for the boss.