Lacazette’s chance to shine in Emirates Cup
london — Alexandre Lacazette will make his first appearance in front of Arsenal’s home crowd this weekend as the Gunners step up their pre-season preparations in the Emirates Cup.
Arsene Wenger splashed out a club record £52 million ($68 million, 58 million euros) to sign Lacazette from Lyon this month and the France striker is expected to get his first taste of the Emirates Stadium when Arsenal face Benfica on Saturday. With Arsenal’s Premier League campaign getting underway against Leicester on August 11 after next week’s Community Shield clash with Chelsea, Lacazette has an opportunity to make a good initial impression on the Gunners faithful in the four-team friendly tournament.
Aside from a desire to justify Wenger’s hefty investment, Lacazette’s Emirates debut will carry extra significance for the 26-yearold, who grew up admiring Arsenal’s legendary ‘Invincibles’.
Emulating that 2003-04 Arsenal team, who won the title without a single defeat thanks to inspired contributions from French stars Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Robert Pires, might be aiming a little too high, but Lacazette is confident he can make a big impact in his debut season. “Arsenal is a legendary club. Throughout my childhood, thanks to Thierry Henry and other French players, I always dreamed of playing for this club,” Lacazette said. —