Keeping Lacazette without Aubameyang far too risky

Arsenal look set to lose Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and now the decision comes down to Alexandre Lacazette. But you can’t have the latter without the former.

All signs point to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang taking his talents elsewhere. Arsenal looks set to pocket a healthy £56m for the prolific striker and some reports also indicate that the Gunners have given up on getting a new deal done.

Perhaps that isn’t so surprising, even with the Champions League placements still undecided, but now the question becomes what to do with Alexandre Lacazette. His exit talks have quieted while Aubameyang took the lead, but with one halfway out the door, what happens to the other?

For me, the two are interconnected. While I could fathom an Arsenal with Aubameyang and without Lacazette, I really can’t fathom the other way around. Neither could Arsene Wenger.

Lacazette had his chance to be the guy and he wasn’t able to. Wenger went and brought in Aubameyang, who became an immediate bro of Lacazette and the bromance kept Lacazette afloat.

While I still think the world of Lacazette, I also fear what becomes of him if Aubameyang isn’t there to serve as a constant morale boost. How long would Lacazette’s goal drought have lasted if Aubameyang wasn’t there to hand him a penalty?

How many goals would Lacazette have missed out on if Aubameyang wasn’t there to serve it to him on a platter?

Lacazette is a great striker, don’t get me wrong, but his confidence issues do not pair well with the lack of consistency Arsenal have displayed in recent years. While his partnership with Aubameyang has always been a source of joy and inspiration, asking Lacazette to carry that mantle on his own is dicey.

Similarly, you’re asking a lot for him to be the Aubameyang in a new bromance, potentially with Odsonne Edouard or Luka Jovic. Lacazette does not have that same presence, that same international reputation as Aubameyang. Nor does he have the ability to turn things around at the drop of a hat.

Lacazette needs more around him than Aubameyang ever would. Again, he’s a great player, but he was never enough for this club.

If we sell Aubameyang, we have to sell Lacazette. Unless Mikel Arteta has something in mind that will ensure that Lacazette has a pocketed confidence booster on hand at all times, but that seems a bit far-fetched. You just can’t have the latter without the former.