Ex-manager defends Arsene Wenger’s decision to spend £52m on new Arsenal signing
Gerard Houllier believes Arsene Wenger was right to spend big on new Arsenal signing Alexandre Lacazette
Gerard Houllier has defended Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger’s decision to spend a club-record fee on signing Alexandre Lacazette this summer.
The France international put pen to paper on a long-term deal with the north London club after Arsenal agreed a reported £52m deal with Ligue 1 side Lyon for the 26-year-old striker.
Lacazette’s transfer fee eclipsed the £42.5m that Arsenal spent on Germany’s World Cup winner Mesut Ozil in August 2013 when the playmaker swapped La Liga giants Real Madrid for the Gunners.
The French centre-forward scored 28 goals in 31 games in Ligue last season, while Lacazette scored a further nine goals in 12 appearances in the cup competitions.
Manchester United signed Anthony Martial in a deal worth in the region of £57.6m in the 2015 summer transfer window, while the Red Devils are thought to be considering a £70m offer for Real Madrid striker Alvaro Morata this summer.
Speaking to talkSPORT about Lacazette’s £52m transfer fee, former Liverpool and Lyon boss Houllier insisted that the striker’s price tag wasn’t excessive.
Houllier said: “When you think Anthony Martial cost €80million Morata is about to cost €90million… Morata hasn’t scored as many goals as Lacazette.
“Morata has played 130 games and scored only 47 goals.”
Arsenal have also signed Bosnian defender Sead Kolasinac in a free transfer from Bundesliga outfit Schalke 04 last month.
