ARSENAL striker Alexandre Lacazette has thrown his hat into the ring to replace Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as Arsenal captain.
And the Frenchman, 30, has admitted that Tottenham skipper Hugo Lloris would be one of his biggest influences in the role.
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In a glossy feature for the Gunners’ matchday programme produced ahead of their clash with West Ham, Lacazette outlined the skills that he feels make him a good leader.
He said: “For me a leader is one who wants to help his team-mates, not just when everything is fine but as well when something goes wrong for them and they have issues.
“I just want to help my team-mates sometimes and be there for them, to remind them what’s important.
“I want to help the young players because I used to be the same as them and I know what it means to play for a club that you love. For me there are different aspects to being a leader.”
Should Lacazette, who skippered the Gunners against Southampton and West Ham, succeed axed Aubameyang as captain, he will bring with him an influence from the other half of North London.
Asked about the leaders that helped shape him as he was making his way at Lyon, Arsenal’s No9 said: “There were a lot because I was training with the first team very early.
“There were leaders like Juninho, then after him there was Cris, who was a proper captain and leader for the team.
“There was also Hugo Lloris, who is the captain of the French international team, and also we had a lot of young players so we had to help each other to help the team because we wanted Lyon to succeed.
“We had to lead the team really early in our careers.”
Asked how pulling on the Arsenal armband makes him feel, he gushed: “It makes me proud. Really proud.
“When you start the game and you are the first man of the team to step on the pitch, it makes you really proud to be representing the club.
“Also, during the game, having the armband is always a good feeling.
“It’s a big responsibility because you have to lift the team as high as possible so that everybody is up at that same level.”
Big Gabi has got a huge presence and leadership at the back
Alex Lacazette
Lacazette certainly doesn’t believe that he is the only leader in the Gunners dressing room, however, and named a number of future contenders to be named skipper.
He said: “Big Gabi has got a huge presence and leadership at the back for example.
“I think when he is more fluent with English that is going to help the team even more.
“Ben White as well is a leader at the back. He’s maybe more quiet, but by the way he plays he can be a good leader and I think with age that will build up more.
“Also Sambi Lokonga, but he has already been a captain in the past, so that’s no surprise.
“Also I think Kieran Tierney has been a captain in the past, maybe for his national ream so you can see we have plenty of leaders in the squad.”
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