Alexandre Lacazette was reportedly convinced to join Arsenal in a secret meeting with Arsène Wenger last month.
An article appearing in The S*n has claimed that a source close to the player has revealed all the background behind the move. As widely reported earlier in the window, Lacazette was very close to a move to Atletico Madrid, before their transfer ban prevented them from signing him until January.
Wenger apparently then moved quickly, flying to Paris to convince him to join, telling him that he could be a big success in London, and that the year absence from the Champions League would only be temporary.
Another piece of information on the move which came to light earlier in the window was that Arsène has been watching Lacazette for a number of years. The S*n’s source claims that the two main reasons he didn’t move sooner were firstly that, originally, Lacazette wasn’t a top goalscorer, despite having a lot to his game. Now that he’s scoring consistently he’s a more complete player.
Secondly, there was an accusation that Alexandre didn’t do it in the big games. Last season he scored against AS Roma, scored twice against Ajax in the Europa League semi-finals, as well as scoring against PSG, Monaco, Nice and Marseille, to round out all the top finishing teams in the league. Only one of those goals was a penalty, and he won that penalty himself.
Whether or not we can believe anyone The S*n claims as a source is highly questionable. But the fact is that those doubts could have been valid in previous years, and Arsenal have done well to move for the player now that they seem to have gone away.