Why Lucas Perez provides a very different threat for Arsenal

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Arsenal’s victory against Crystal Palace was made rather straight forward by one of the most fantastic goals in Premier League history from none other than the French striker Oliver Giroud. However, a different player can prove to be a huge difference maker, Lucas Perez.

He looks better when utilised on the wing, his inside runs behind provide a nice balance with Giroud who is much better at holding the ball up, flicking it on or getting on the end of crosses. Perez offers a tenacity that many of the Arsenal forwards, except Alexis Sanchez, lack. This was highlighted in the match against Palace when he ran the majority of pitch in order to win the ball back for the Gunners before the devastating counter attack that ended with Giroud’s scorpion kick hitting the back of the net.

Perez offers a different kind of ability to many of the wingers which Wenger has at his disposal. While he does share similarities with Sanchez in the way in which he tracks back and makes inside runs, he is very different to the more likely options on the wide-right, Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. The two England starlets like to beat their men for pace, running out wide, before delivering a cross or getting a shot away, Perez is not as accustomed to this style of play.

Walcott’s runs can be narrower at times, but Chamberlain is particularly powerful when running outside, and Perez has a natural left foot, making him much more likely to cut in and get a shot away than Walcott or Chamberlain.

Alex Iwobi is another Arsenal man who does come inside, however this is partially due to his instinct to play in the number 10 role which is usually filled by Mesut Özil. Perez does not have the silk of Iwobi, but he has a goal scorer’s instinct. His tendency to be in the right place at the right time is not merely a coincidence, it’s impulsive. Perez wants to score goals and it is evident in the way he pushes forward with every attack, he drives forwards with real purpose and is positive in his play.

He’s had a rough time since he joined Arsenal in the summer, failing to gain a starting opportunity before becoming injured. However, since returning he has looked influential and even devastating at times. Arsenal’s squad depth is unquestionable, and pundits are often questioning whether Arsenal have got the bite to win the league. Along with Granit Xhaka and Shkodran Mustafi, it is evident Wenger has brought in Perez to provide some of that fire that the Gunners have lacked in recent years.

It is unlikely that Perez will start every match because of the depth out wide and up top, particularly with Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez in such tantalising form, but Perez can wait in the wings for an opportunity and the desire is certainly there for him to take it. When he has featured from the start this season, he’s looked fantastic and certainly of enough quality to be a regular rotation player for Wenger’s men.

Will he prove to be a crucial cog in Wenger’s title chasing machine? Only time will tell. He has been managed well thus far by Wenger who has given more of his long-term players in Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain more opportunities than in previous years. Alex Iwobi is also a first-team regular now, but this all just comes back down to depth, and Perez provides a little bit more depth in attacking positions. Gunners fans will be hoping that Perez can provide some of the punishing brutality that Arsenal have lacked.

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