‘It Was Difficult’- Alexandre Lacazette Reveals The Reason Behind His Move To Lyon

Arsenal News Transfer: Arsenal star striker Alexandre Lacazette has explained his reason to take a pay cut as he has signed for French club Lyon. Lacazette was a free agent as his contract expired in June and it was pretty clear that he wanted to move away. Even Mikel Arteta has started the search for a new striker to replace the Frenchman.

Surprisingly, Lacazette had joined Arsenal from Lyon five years ago. He was signed for a club-record fee of around £53m. The Gunners labelled it as a ‘very strong signing’ that could upgrade their attack.

These statements were correct up to some extent as Alexandre Lacazette was a half-success at the London club. But recently, Arsenal has been trying to hand him a new contract as Arteta wanted him in his plans. However, Eddie Nketiah’s sudden rise to stardom moved Lacazette to the bench. He had been absent from the starting XI from the past seven games and in fact, Nketiah was even-handed a new contract.

Rennes was one of the French clubs who were the first to show interest in the Arsenal striker. However, they preferred to stay away as they couldn’t afford the wage demands. In February, Lyon came back with a strong interest but their president Jean-Michel Aulas was well aware that his wages could be a stumbling block.

When things were looking rough for Alexandre Lacazette, he decided to take matters into his own hands by showing his love for the sport. He signed for Lyon as a free agent on Thursday. Lacazette has even revealed that took a pay cut to join Lyon as he wanted the French club to return to its past glory and that, the money isn’t the factor that he is working for.

Arsenal News Transfer: Why Did Alexandre Lacazette Take A Pay Cut To Join Lyon?

As reported by Sportsbible, Lacazette has given the reason behind his decision by saying: “I took my time making the decision to return. Football is a beautiful job. It was difficult to watch Lyon from a distance last season and not be able to help them I wanted to see a strong Lyon and to make sure this period is over for them. My aim will be to see Lyon come back stronger and achieve European qualification.”

Indeed, this is something we expect from passionate footballers who want to win it for their dream club. We wish Alexandre Lacazette all the best for his career ahead.