Striker Alexandre Lacazette will reportedly follow in Aaron Ramsey’s footsteps by leaving Arsenal on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the season
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Arsenal are set to lose another first-team player for free with Alexandre Lacazette planning to leave when his contract expires next summer, according to reports in France.
Lacazette, 30, will be able to enter talks with clubs outside England in January and he is on Atletico Madrid’s radar.
The French striker was the Gunners’ top scorer last season with 17 goals in all competitions and he netted the opener in the 3-0 Carabao Cup victory over AFC Wimbledon on Wednesday.
Emirates chiefs have been locked in talks with Lacazette’s representatives with a view to extending his deal, but negotiations have stalled.
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That is according to Le10sport , who add Atletico have a good relationship with Lacazette’s camp and hope to snap him up on a free transfer.
The situation is reminiscent of Aaron Ramsey’s in 2019, when the Welsh midfielder joined Juventus on a free transfer after the expiry of his contract saw his 11-year association with Arsenal come to an end.
Manager Diego Simeone has identified Lacazette as a proven goalscorer to bolster his side, with Luis Suarez out of contract next summer after firing Atletico to La Liga glory last season.
Simeone tried to sign Lacazette back in 2017 and agreed a deal with Lyon, but the Spanish club were hit with a transfer ban for breaking rules regarding the signing of under-16 players.
Lacazette would go on to join Arsenal instead and he has scored 67 goals in 173 appearances for the north London club.
The France international has had to settle for a minor role this season, making just three appearances in all competitions due to a bout of coronavirus in August.
Who should Arsenal sign to replace Alexandre Lacazette if he leaves next summer? Have your say in the comments.
Two of those appearances have come in the Carabao Cup, with Lacazette finding the back of the net against West Bromwich Albion and Wimbledon in the third and fourth rounds respectively.
“I think everyone played well,” said Lacazette of the performance. “All the players needed some minutes because we don’t have many games this season so you see when we have a game like this we just want to perform well and to enjoy it on the pitch together.”
The Arsenal No.9 added: “Honestly, I was surprised to see that many fans tonight for the game. We missed them a lot during the pandemic so now that they are here, we have to give back the confidence that they give us.
We want to go as far as possible in this competition and want to win this kind of game.
“We have to make it easy and I think we should have done that earlier but at the end we have to say that they played well.”
