Alexandre Lacazette

Alexandre Lacazette is a French footballer who plays as a striker for Lyon.

The France international became Arsenal’s most-expensive player at the time when he completed a £52.6m move to The Emirates from Ligue 1 side Lyon in July 2017.

Lacazette had previously established himself as one of Europe’s top goal-scorers during spell at Lyon.

He was named the Ligue 1 player of the year in 2013-14 but the prolific striker failed to win the French title.

The centre-forward made his senior France debut back in 2013 and returned to his former club Lyon in the summer of 2022.

So, how much do you know about Lacazette’s career and journey as a footballer? This is his story.

Early Life

Alexandre is of Guadeloupean origin like Arsenal legend Thierry Henry and he has three older brothers. He started playing football at the age of seven at a local club called Elan Sportif in Lyon.

Alexandre Lacazette (Photo: Alexandre Lacazette / Instagram)

Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t long before Alexandre was recruited for Lyon’s youth set-up.

Lacazette earned regular comparisons to former Lyon striker Sonny Anderson as he progressed through the youth ranks.

Lacazette scored 17 goals in 41 appearances for the French club’s second string between 2007 and 2009.

Lyon (2010-17)

Manager Claude Peul was responsible for giving Lacazette his break at Lyon, and he made his debut in 2-1 win against Auxerre in May 2010.

Lacazette started the 2010-11 season with the club’s reserve team but didn’t have to wait too long for his first competitive appearance of the campaign with the senior team.

Alexandre came off the bench in a 1-1 draw at Arles on 24 October and a week later scored his first competitive goal in a 2-1 win over Sochaux following his 41st-minute introduction.

Lacazette finished his first full season as a first-team regular with two goals in 11 substitute appearances.

Alexandre Lacazette (Photo: Alexandre Lacazette / Instagram)

He continued his rise at the French club with five goals and two assists in 15 starts and 14 substitute appearances in the 2011-12 Ligue 1 season.

The next campaign saw Lacazette establish himself as a regular in the Lyon team but the centre-forward didn’t manage to produce the prolific stats that have since become synonymous with the France international.

He managed a mere three goals and four assists in 31 Ligue 1 games in 2012-13.

But Lacazette underlined his talent with a brilliant return of 15 goals in 36 appearances in the 2013-14 season.

He got on the score-sheet in the Coupe de France final but Lacazette’s goal wasn’t enough to prevent a 2-1 loss to Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.

The decision to hand Lacazette a new deal paid dividends as Alexandre broke a Lyon record by scoring 27 goals in a single season to prompt talk of a potential move to the Premier League. He finished as Ligue 1’s top goal-scorer ahead of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani.

Arsenal were linked with Lacazette in the 2015 summer transfer window and Lyon handed their star striker a new and improved deal less than 12 months after his previous contract had been signed.

He failed to match his 2014-15 tally but Lacazette still produced 21 goals in 34 games in Ligue 1 to continue to build upon his reputation as one of Europe’s best goal-scorers.

Alexandre became Lyon’s fourth highest goal-scorer in his final season at Lyon.

Fittingly, Lacazette ended his time at Lyon with his most prolific season to date. Alexandre scored 28 goals in 30 games in 2016-17 Ligue 1 campaign.

He netted seven times in 12 appearances in the Champions League and the Europa League to prove his European pedigree.

Arsenal

Arsenal completed a club-record deal to sign Lacazette in the 2017 summer transfer window following a number of seasons of speculation linking the striker with the north London club.

The Gunners coughed up £52.6m to sign Lacazette in a deal that surpassed Arsenal’s previous record transfer fee when Mesut Ozil joined the FA Cup holders from Real Madrid for the princely sum of £42.5m.

Alexandre required a mere 94 seconds to score his first Premier League goal in Arsenal’s 4-3 win over Leicester City at The Emirates in August 2017.

He found his feet at the Emirates Stadium in brisk fashion with goals against Bournemouth and West Brom in north London. Alexandre equalled Brian Marwood’s record from 1988 after he scored in his first three home games.

Lacazette finally scored in his first Premier League game on the road in Arsenal’s 5-2 victory over Everton at Goodison Park in October 2017.

Alexandre Lacazette (Photo: Alexandre Lacazette / Instagram)

The France international netted against one of Arsenal’s title rivals for the first time with a consolation goal in a 3-1 loss at Manchester City in November 2017.

He continued his fine start to his Premier League career with the opener in Arsenal’s 5-0 victory over promoted club Huddersfield Town at The Emirates.

Lacazette completed the double against the Manchester club with what ultimately proved a consolation goal in the Red Devils’ 3-1 win against Arsenal in December 2017.

His position at the Gunners was cast in doubt following Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s arrival in a new club record £57m deal.

However, Alexandre still scored eight times in 11 appearances between February and May.

Lacazette ended his first campaign in England with 14 goals in 32 games in all competitions.

He helped Arsenal to win the FA Cup under Mikel Arteta in the 2019-20 season.

Alexandre Lacazette (Photo: Adidas)

Return To Lyon

Lacazette returned to Lyon from Arsenal in the summer 2022 transfer window.

International Career

Lacazette was a regular in the France youth set-up following his fine performances for Lyon from an early age.

He helped France to reach the Under-17 European Championship final before they lost to Spain in 2008. He scored a goal against the Republic of Ireland group stage.

Lacazette and his France team-mates managed to exact revenge in the Under-19 European Championship in 2010 when he netted the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Spain in the final.

Alexandre Lacazette (Photo: Alexandre Lacazette / Instagram)

In 2011, Alexandre was in prolific form at the Under-20 World Cup. He scored five goals to finish as the competition’s leading goal-scorer.

Alexandre had to wait until 2013 to make his first senior France appearance despite his impressive club performances at club level.

He had to wait almost 24 months to score his first France goal in a 2-0 win over Denmark in a friendly.

Alexandre scored twice in a 2-2 draw with reigning world champions Germany in a friendly in November 2017 following his fine start to his Arsenal career.

Personal Life

Alexandre is the youngest of four brothers. One of his siblings, Benoit, played in the Swiss second division and French fourth division but didn’t reach the same levels as his younger brother.

The Arsenal striker’s cousin, Romuald Lacazette, is also a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder.

Alexandre Lacazette – Did You Know?

• Lacazette’s tally of 28 Ligue 1 goals in 2016 was the best total for a French forward in a single calendar year since Jean-Pierre Papin notched the same number in 1991.

• His former Arsenal team-mate Francis Coquelin was also part of the French team that beat Spain in the Under-19 European Championship.

• Of Alexandre’s 28 Ligue 1 goals in the 2016-17 season, just two came from outside the penalty area.

• Lacazette was with Lyon since the age of 12 and spent his entire career in the city where he was born in in 1991 before his record move to Arsenal in 2017.

• He only won two trophies during his time at Lyon – the 2011-12 Coupe de France title and the 2012 Trophee des Champions – although as mentioned above, he did win the Uefa Under-19 Championships in 2010.

• He has been likened to Arsenal and France legend Thierry Henry throughout his professional career. Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas said of Alexandre during his time at Lyon: “He’s our version of a young Thierry Henry.”