Lacazette heaps praise on Mikel Arteta's tactical shift
Alexandre Lacazette heaps praise on Mikel Arteta’s tactical shift that has brought Arsenal recent wins over Chelsea and Brighton as French striker claims they ‘lacked attacking players’ in his old system
- Arsenal were on dreadful losing run being sucked towards relegation battle
- But Gunners enjoyed victories over Chelsea and then Brighton subsequently
- Mikel Arteta made a tactical switch to 4-3-3 and it has paid off handsomely
- Alexandre Lacazette paid tribute to manager for his recent positive changes
Alexandre Lacazette has hailed Mikel Arteta’s recent tactical changes for arresting Arsenal’s slide towards a relegation battle.
The striker believes a shift to a 4-3-3 formation has paid dividends as the Gunners ‘previously lacked attacking players’ on a run of four successive defeats at home and 13 hours without a goal from open play.
Arteta was under mounting pressure but his alterations in selection and formation have paid off in wins over Chelsea and Brighton, much to the delight of Lacazette.
Alexandre Lacazette scored almost immediately after coming off the bench against Brighton
The Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was praised by his striker for tactical changes to the side
He told RMC: ‘The coach puts me as a No 9, but more with a role to play for my team-mates and challenge a lot. It is not really a 10’s position, nor an old-fashioned No 9 that has to stay ahead and score goals.
‘He knows my qualities and knows that I like to play short and help my team-mates with the development of play.
‘Now we’re four behind and three midfielders. It’s much easier, because before we lacked attacking players. This tactical change is also good for us.’
Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli have been picked to great effect with the youngsters providing some much-needed youthful verve.
Lacazette tweaked his back against Chelsea and had to settle for a place on the bench against Brighton.
His impact was immediate, scoring just 21 seconds after he was brought on by Arteta.
Afterwards he reflected: ‘It never happened to me. After the match, I was told that I had scored after 21 seconds.
‘I was a little surprised, but it’s true that everything went quickly.
Arsenal are now preparing for a trip to West Brom after winning two consecutive games
‘When the team lost confidence, it was also my case. I had few situations in match, only one per game. I had to make it happen, and that’s what I didn’t do.
‘In the game, it was not exceptional either. Since then, we have regained confidence, me too with the matches of Europa League who helped me.’
Next up for Lacazette and Co is a trip to face West Brom at the Hawthorns on Saturday with Arsenal having risen to 13th and looking up the table rather than over their shoulder.
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