Also Jones "People are trotting out the "not bad but not special"  you can refer to me by name you know.

Captain said he didn't have the X factor and Dules said he was a poor man's Wiltord - what in particular is objectionable about me saying he's not special?
I did qualify that by saying so far he has shown nothin that proves him exceptional - I don't see what is OTT about that.

He has shown on numerous occasions touch that is beyond the likes of Lukaku and Kane and more to the standard of Aguero. He's also shown an intelligence in finding runners and combinatioms in and around a crowded box that is beyond all but Aguero in this League. Maybe Firmino on a good day.

So I definitely wouldn't agree he's shown nothing special. That said, his lack of killer speed to get away from defenders and the fact that he is quite small, limits him somewhat. Although, he looks clever enough that he'll adapt and work it out, but who knows for sure at this point?

The truth is goals really do change opinions. For good and for bad. And he doesnt have enough of them. My prediction is he will score at a similar rate to Lukaku, Aguero and Kane from next season on and he'll be viewed very differently because of it. His touch, awareness and link play is already very impessive.

Ricky1985 wrote:

He has shown on numerous occasions touch that is beyond the likes of Lukaku and Kane and more to the standard of Aguero.

I don't think so Ricky. The ball is constantly bouncing off him when he's playing with his back towards the goal. It happened a few times yesterday too. He has a lot of other good points but I find his touch really disappointing. More in the Lukaku than Kane bracket and nowhere near Agüero, Jesus, etc.

I hope your prediction is correct Ricky

He'll be a star next season.

Klaus wrote:

Ricky1985 wrote:

He has shown on numerous occasions touch that is beyond the likes of Lukaku and Kane and more to the standard of Aguero.

I don't think so Ricky. The ball is constantly bouncing off him when he's playing with his back towards the goal. It happened a few times yesterday too. He has a lot of other good points but I find his touch really disappointing. More in the Lukaku than Kane bracket and nowhere near Agüero, Jesus, etc.

I think his touch is really clever, if someone inconsistent. What I like about it is that he doesn't just try to bring it under control but he tries to manipulate it to get into a good position, perhaps to his detriment at times as it probably results in the lack of consistency. 

I'd say he's miles ahead of Lukaku though but he lacks the consistency of Aguero and co.

He’s about the same size if not bigger than Aguero, so I don’t think size is an issue. He needs to be taking more responsibility, at the moment he seems to be scared of upsetting Ozil and Sanchez, he needs to realise he is the main goalscorer. In terms of ability there arent many x factor strikers around, those mainly are judged purely on goals, like for example Aubameyang.

Tactics wrote:

I think some fans are using  moments like these as a proof to confirm any doubts they had about him but I'd say most fans see him as a genuinely very good striker (not elite) who's facing those mini droughts that strikers usually go through. Once he bangs one in, everything will click again in front of goal. 

For my part I have a completely open mind on him.
I had zero experience of watching him play prior to his transfer therefore I had no opinion on his quality.
Now that I've seen him play regularly I'm forming the opinion that against defences that will pay him close attention and starve him of space he does not have the instinct or reflexes to conjure up the shot that will beat the goalkeeper.

Naturally if he hits a purple patch and starts to convert the type of chances that he failed to convert last night I'll reassess based on what I see.

Is it not a stretch to say he's on a mini drought given that he scored against Liverpool and Palace?
Does not scoring in 2 games constitute a mini drought?

y va marquer wrote:

Tactics wrote:

I think some fans are using  moments like these as a proof to confirm any doubts they had about him but I'd say most fans see him as a genuinely very good striker (not elite) who's facing those mini droughts that strikers usually go through. Once he bangs one in, everything will click again in front of goal. 

For my part I have a completely open mind on him.
I had zero experience of watching him play prior to his transfer therefore I had no opinion on his quality.
Now that I've seen him play regularly I'm forming the opinion that against defences that will pay him close attention and starve him of space he does not have the instinct or reflexes to conjure up the shot that will beat the goalkeeper.

Naturally if he hits a purple patch and starts to convert the type of chances that he failed to convert last night I'll reassess based on what I see.

Is it not a stretch to say he's on a mini drought given that he scored against Liverpool and Palace?
Does not scoring in 2 games constitute a mini drought?

Such as that turn and shot in the 2nd half that forced a very good save from Courtois? 

I personally think he excels in confined spaces, be it through quick combination play or making space for himself to shoot. It's for this reason I preferred him to the likes of Lukaku and Aubeyamg when we were linked with to all 3 in the summer.  Football is all about opinions though , we all see things differently and I don't think there's any malice on your part in your reservations about certain aspects of his game.

I can't remember him scoring against Pool or Palace, I was under the impression that he was going through a mini drought at the moment 

Just did a quick check, he didn't score against Palace or Pool, he had 2 assists though

My mind's gone, laid low with Aussie 'flu.
Wasn't sure about Palace but thought he had scored against Pool.
Never mind, it's a drought.

Klaus wrote:

Ricky1985 wrote:

He has shown on numerous occasions touch that is beyond the likes of Lukaku and Kane and more to the standard of Aguero.

I don't think so Ricky. The ball is constantly bouncing off him when he's playing with his back towards the goal. It happened a few times yesterday too. He has a lot of other good points but I find his touch really disappointing. More in the Lukaku than Kane bracket and nowhere near Agüero, Jesus, etc.

He looks like he is being drilled on playing with his back to goal and hasn't quite got the hang of whatever is being coached yet.

In his defence, the number of times that he shakes a defender, is in behind and it goes unnoticed by his team mates is criminal.

Annoys the hell out of me too whenever he make good runs but we prefer to pass sideways. He exploited plenty of space but we don't pick him out enough. Whenever we do though, he can often spin defenders brilliantly to get shots away and tight areas.

That said, he is really suffering from a confidence issue. Compare his shots yesterday to those at the start of the season where he finished with aplomb.

Never a dud though, for 45m in current market someone of his quality is a bargain.

Klaus wrote:

Ricky1985 wrote:

He has shown on numerous occasions touch that is beyond the likes of Lukaku and Kane and more to the standard of Aguero.

I don't think so Ricky. The ball is constantly bouncing off him when he's playing with his back towards the goal. It happened a few times yesterday too. He has a lot of other good points but I find his touch really disappointing. More in the Lukaku than Kane bracket and nowhere near Agüero, Jesus, etc.

I think that's more to do with him not being strong enough at the moment to hold off big defenders as the ball comes into him.

All I know is I've seen more than enough moments of exquisite touch, balance and footwork to be impressed. I've never seen that from Kane or Lukaku, for example, they don't have that in their locker (they have other strengths obviously)

I have been disappointed a few times when his touch has let him down in front of goal, but given the quality of his touch at other times, I'm hoping that's just anxiety because he's still not settled into the team and indeed into English football. He knows he still has it all to prove and that all eyes are very much on every move he makes. It looks like he wants it too much and is trying too hard. I see him as a character that will take a little while to figure it all out and really get confident and comfortable. Very much in the Pires mould.

I actually feel sorry for him because he has played well to very well in all but a few games this season but it largely goes unnoticed by Arsenal fans and completely unnoticed by everyone else when there isn't a goal to chalk up next to his name.

I think he'll come good, you don't score 37 goals in a season and average near that for 4 seasons in a row without being able to finish extremely well and that's all that is really missing from his game right now.

This is something that I had not considered 

@ArsenalFc1886

In the 15 games Lacazette has played with Ramsey, he's scored 8 goals, with Ramsey assisting his last 3. In the 6 games without Ramsey Laca's failed to score.
Ramsey's pivotal to the 3421 system.

Every striker needs another goal threat just behind them. It opens space up massively as there are more players to close down. Without that type of midfield player (De Bruyne/Ramsey) or a second striker, you're always going to struggle. Ozil and Sanchez cut inside in front of the defense...doesn't help. You need verticality in the final 3rd.

jones wrote:

Think it was Bold Tone who said that him knowing that Wenger will inevitably haul him off at some point puts him under pressure and throws his finishing off, think there might be something to that.
The whole team has played like shit for most of the season but our new striker not firing under these circumstances seems enough to classify him as a dud, some of the posts here recently are shocking tbh.

Yup. This is the quote from another thread and it is simply a lukewarm opinion that is just as right or wrong as everyone else's apart from Laca himself.

Bold Tone wrote:

Asterix wrote:

That Lacazette chance at the start of the second half - geez that does your head in. Needed a Mickey Thomas dink.

It's been bugging me that he no longer is as clinical as he was when he first joined.
I don't know if i'm imagining things, but he seems to want to try too hard in the second half which i'm assuming is due to the knowledge that he only has 25 minutes to score. He ends up losing his normal cool head and hitting the ball without picking his spot or trying too hard to impress like in the previous game when he went for that extravagant chip.

Arsene Wenger is happy with his adaptation, his team mates too.

There is no problem (between Wenger and Lacazette), we can rest assured: if Lacazette has been replaced so often by Wenger, it’s because he’s settling in.

The Alsatian has always taken his time to integrate the recruits who don’t know the Premier League.

Ricky1985 wrote:

Klaus wrote:

I don't think so Ricky. The ball is constantly bouncing off him when he's playing with his back towards the goal. It happened a few times yesterday too. He has a lot of other good points but I find his touch really disappointing. More in the Lukaku than Kane bracket and nowhere near Agüero, Jesus, etc.

I think that's more to do with him not being strong enough at the moment to hold off big defenders as the ball comes into him.

All I know is I've seen more than enough moments of exquisite touch, balance and footwork to be impressed. I've never seen that from Kane or Lukaku, for example, they don't have that in their locker (they have other strengths obviously)

I have been disappointed a few times when his touch has let him down in front of goal, but given the quality of his touch at other times, I'm hoping that's just anxiety because he's still not settled into the team and indeed into English football. He knows he still has it all to prove and that all eyes are very much on every move he makes. It looks like he wants it too much and is trying too hard. I see him as a character that will take a little while to figure it all out and really get confident and comfortable. Very much in the Pires mould.

I actually feel sorry for him because he has played well to very well in all but a few games this season but it largely goes unnoticed by Arsenal fans and completely unnoticed by everyone else when there isn't a goal to chalk up next to his name.

I think he'll come good, you don't score 37 goals in a season and average near that for 4 seasons in a row without being able to finish extremely well and that's all that is really missing from his game right now.

Actually most fans I know of other clubs think Lacazette is quality. Even the United friends I have would prefer to have Lacazette over Lukaku and think the Belgian is a bit of an oaf who picks on small teams but can't be relied upon.