Arsene Wenger has said that Alexandre Lacazette may be suffering from a lack of confidence – a problem that he has contributed to.

Lacazette has gone eight games without a goal and is starting to struggle up front.

The Frenchman’s confidence may be flagging during this rough period, and is something Arsene Wenger has admitted could affect his confidence.

Wenger may not be worried, but he is, in some ways, responsible for Lacazette’s current form.

Whereas other clubs give their strikers as much time as possible to score, Wenger frequently takes Lacazette out of games with twenty minutes to go.

Even when Arsenal are looking for a goal, he still gets taken off.

That must send the wrong message to the striker, who would think that the manager doesn’t have faith in him to score.

Lacazette spends all his time on the pitch working hard to make something out of the scraps he’s given.

Then, regardless of whether he’s scored or not, he gets taken off.

He’s regularly deprived the opportunity to score against tiring defences, or to score a potentially important goal for the club.

This is damaging for any striker.

There are further issues with the set-up of the team.

Rather than adjust to Lacazette’s strengths in an attempt to make more chances for him, the team plays the same as it always did.

Wenger may have faith that his striker will improve on his own, but he’s staring some large issues in the face and has the power to do something about it.