Over the summer, Jamie Vardy made the decision, thankfully, to turn Arsenal down.

While I never wanted him in the first place (check the site, it’s all here), it’s easy to seem like you’re simply being a smartarse with hindsight.

So did Arsenal lose out by having to sign Lucas Perez, especially given the Spaniard’s inexplicable inability to get a start in the side.

Don’t be so daft.

READ MORE: Why is Perez not starting for Arsenal?

Let’s have a look at the two players, Lucas first, Vardy second. The red bold ones are the metrics in which Lucas has been better, red with no bold, they are both equal.

The stats

  • Age: 28 v 30
  • Premier League goals: 1 v 5
  • Premier League assists: 0 v 2
  • Premier League minutes: 218 v 1,341
  • Champions League goals: 3 v 0
  • Champions League assists: 2 v 0
  • Champions League minutes: 118 v 425
  • FA Cup goals: 0 v 0
  • FA Cup assists: 1 v 0
  • FA Cup minutes: 90 v 0
  • EFL Cup goals: 2 v 0
  • EFL Cup assists: 1 v 0
  • EFL Cup minutes: 252 v 44
  • Total goals: 6 v 6
  • Total assists: 4 v 4
  • Minutes per goal: 117  v 316.6
  • Minutes per assist: 169.5 v 475
  • Goal involvement every: 67.8 v 190
  • Premier League pass completion rate: 78% v 66%
  • Champions League pass completion rate: 69% v 63%
  • Yellow cards: 1 v 4
  • Red cards: 0 v 1
  • Injuries: 1 (ankle, 36 days, 8 games) v 0 (but served 3-game suspension)
  • Transfer fee: £17m v £20m

READ MORE: Why is Perez not starting for Arsenal?