Alexandre Lacazette Admits That Wantaway Arsenal Star Was the Reason He Joined the Gunners

Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette has admitted that the presence of Alexis Sanchez at the Emirates Stadium is one of the key reasons as to why he joined the Gunners.

Lacazette arrived into north London from Lyon in the summer, for a reported fee of around £46m - at the same time that Arsenal's wantaway Chilean was doing his best to join Manchester City.

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However, Lacazette has claimed that playing alongside the 29-year-old is something that excites the Frenchman - and claims that he wants to continue that for a long time:

“That’s one of the reasons why I wanted to come to Arsenal - to play with players of [Alexis’] calibre,” Lacazette told Arsenal Player (via Goal).

“Just seeing him in training, I like the way he plays and his mental attitude. His approach makes me want to play alongside him - hopefully for many years.”

If Sanchez is to stay at the Emirates Stadium for the amount of time Lacazette desires, then Arsene Wenger will need to tie him down to a new contract as soon as possible.

Once January rolls around, the Chile international is free to discuss a future contract with any club he desires ahead of a summer move away from north London - all for no transfer fee.

Of course, this was all known to Wenger when he decided not to sell his star man at the end of August (despite a lot of interest from the likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain).

The likelihood at this point in time is that Sanchez will not be an Arsenal player come summer - but that won't stop Lacazette from hoping he signs a new deal at the Emirates.