Alexandre Lacazette can be Arsenal's saviour, says Arsene Wenger as he backs striker to bring out the best in Alexis Sanchez at the Emirates

  • Arsenal could field Alexandre Lacazette and Alexis Sanchez against Liverpool
  • Arsene Wenger believes Lacazette can make Sanchez into an even better player 
  • Wenger compared some of Lacazette's attributes to those of Luis Suarez 

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has likened Alexandre Lacazette's arrival to that of Luis Suarez at Barcelona and believes he could bring out the best in Alexis Sanchez.

Lacazette joined Arsenal this summer from Lyon as part of a club-record deal that could eventually be worth £53million.

Wenger can deploy his countryman as part of a potentially lethal front three alongside Mesut Ozil and Sanchez, who is fit for the clash with Liverpool after recovering from an abdominal injury.

Alexandre Lacazette and Alexis Sanchez take part in Arsenal training 

Alexandre Lacazette and Alexis Sanchez take part in Arsenal training 

Lacazette has been backed to bring the best out of Sanchez by Arsene Wenger

Lacazette has been backed to bring the best out of Sanchez by Arsene Wenger

It is a scenario he has not had recently and he compared it to Barcelona's signing of Suarez to play alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar in 2014.


Combining so many star players can backfire and Wenger said he spoke to Barca defender Javier Mascherano about such a possibility when Suarez moved there.

Then, Wenger's fears proved unfounded and he believes that will be the case too when Lacazette and Sanchez are paired.

'There are all the ingredients there,' he said. 'The two are good goalscorers, the two are good passers, the two have good assists — that means they can find each other.

'The rest will be more about the desire to play with each other, but usually the good players have that.

Wenger has compared his new French striker to Barcelona superstar Luis Suarez

Wenger has compared his new French striker to Barcelona superstar Luis Suarez

'I think that was the question we all had when Suarez went to Barcelona and they had already Neymar and Messi. But one of the qualities of Suarez is he manages to get the best out of people around him.'

Wenger sees similar traits to that of Suarez in Lacazette.

'You have many types of strikers and he is the one who is more of a combination player than a finisher,' he said.

And, during a transfer window where players are going for £200m, Wenger said: 'It is a decent price.'

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