Alexandre Lacazette cameo a positive sign for Arsenal but Theo Walcott may have to reinvent himself again

Striking start | Lacazette scores on his Arsenal debut
Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images
James Benge13 July 2017

Arsenal began their pre-season campaign with a comfortable 2-0 win over Sydney FC at the ANZ Stadium, captain Per Mertesacker and record signing Alexandre Lacazette finding the net.

Arsene Wenger will not need reminding that there is only so much that can be read into pre-season friendlies where match fitness is the only real priority.

But in a match where both summer signings made their first appearances for the Gunners there was plenty for Wenger to ponder with the start of the new season less than a month away.

Lacazette cameo suggests he offers something different

As ever Wenger kept Arsenal waiting on substitutes, only swapping Petr Cech for Emiliano Martinez before the 68th minute introduction of Arsenal’s record signing.

Inevitably then there was little to go on as the £52million man looks to prove his worth, though his predilection to turn and run with the ball is something Arsenal have lacked from a striker in some time. It almost paid off when Lacazette turned smartly just outside the area before slipping in Donyell Malen for a shot on goal.

He’ll score more difficult goals than his well-taken 83rd minute tap-in from eight yards out, where all the credit must go to Alex Iwobi for his powerful run down the right, but the timing of the run was just what was needed, allowing Lacazette to ghost in behind the Sydney defence.

It’ll be several months before we can conclusively judge whether Lacazette was worth the extravagant outlay but the attributes of the Frenchman’s game at least suggest that in principle he is a sound addition.

Nelson is ready for the step up

Photo: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images
Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

Arsenal pre-seasons past are littered with the ghosts of bright young things who could have been the next Wenger project. But those who have been following Arsenal’s youth setup over recent years will be convinced that Reiss Nelson’s impressive first-team bow is no false dawn.

The Elephant and Castle-native embraced his opportunity even in an unfamiliar role of right wing-back, where he very much placed the emphasis on wing. For all Arsenal’s glutton of attacking midfielders they have at times lacked players who will take possession and drive at defenders but that is what Nelson brings, and it was more than Sydney could hope for.

Wenger has already confirmed that Nelson will be promoted to the first team next season. If he can seize his opportunities with the same verve and derring-do as he did in Sydney it may not be long before he is a regular fixture in the Arsenal side.

Walcott must reinvent himself yet again

Photo: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

It is perhaps the most stereotypically Theo Walcott thing to happen. Just as he abandons his pursuit of life as a central striker and begins to hit his peak as a right winger that Wenger decides he no longer needs right wingers.

Now for the umpteenth season in a row Walcott is facing an identity crisis, with the spots in behind a central striker presumably his most likely position. A pity for him then that Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and/or Thomas Lemar will also be rivalling him for those spots.

A flurry of missed chances early in the second half was not what Walcott needed to press his case for future selection. He will remain a valued part of Wenger’s squad but for now it is difficult to see quite how the 28-year-old fits comfortably into the Arsenal front three.

Pressure on Kolasinac with back three here to stay

Photo: AFP/Getty Images
AFP/Getty Images

Wenger has confirmed that the back three he threw together amid the panic of the spring months is here to stay and will be the formation with which he begins the new season. That puts the pressure firmly on new man Sead Kolasinac to settle quickly, whichever position he starts out in.

It had been assumed that the Bosnian international would take the left wing-back berth for his own but at the ANZ Stadium Wenger placed him alongside Per Mertesacker and Krystian Bielik – bound for the Championship on loan – in the back three.

With Laurent Koscielny suspended and a quintet of defenders doubts for the Community Shield at the very least due to their international commitments and injuries Wenger will need to be creative in the construction of his backline against Leicester on Friday August 11.

Despite the tame nature of the opposition Kolasinac will have appreciated the 68 minutes even if much sterner challenges lie ahead.

Sydney provide ideal workout for Arsenal

Commercial considerations may lead the way when Arsenal plot out their summer schedules but the club’s marketing department can feel they’ve done well by the first team in selecting Sydney FC as the Gunners’ first pre-season opponents.

In the first half the hosts had the good grace to sit back and give the capacity crowd what they wanted, a chance to see Arsenal stars working their magic. Yet this was no simple walkover for the Gunners, whose keep ball exercise in the early exchanges was at least disrupted by the organised ranks of Sydney defence.

The second half brought infrequent bursts forward from the visitors, who remained effective in defence, but in truth this was little more than the semi-competitive warm-up with which Wenger would want to start a pre-season that will feature more significant tests from the likes of Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Sevilla.

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