Bayer counting on Chicharito to extinguish Atletico threat

Bayer counting on Chicharito to extinguish Atletico threat

Arsene Wenger is “privately resigned” to losing Alexis Sanchez in the summer transfer window, and has identified Alexandre Lacazette as an ideal replacement at Arsenal, reports The Mirror’s John Cross.

Lyon claimed it had spurned a €35-million (£30-million) bid from Arsenal last summer, but this time it could take a huge €70 million (£60 million) to prize him from the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region.

There could be tougher competition than West Ham United – which also apparently had an offer refused in that transfer window – to sign Lacazette this time around. Liverpool, the Gunners’ opponent in Saturday’s Premier League fixtures and a top-four rival, is also interested, but will have to offload Daniel Sturridge to free up funds.

If Antoine Griezmann leaves for Manchester United at the end of the season, Atletico Madrid could too join the race.

Lacazette, 25, is believed to be ready to entertain a move from his hometown club, where he made his professional debut under Claude Puel in 2010. His finishing and dribbling finesse have earned him plaudits outside of France over the past three seasons, which have seen him tally a huge 70 strikes in 89 Ligue 1 appearances.

(Photo courtesy: Reuters)

And Arsenal may be the most desperate party to land Lacazette due to the possibility of a considerable void left by Sanchez. The Chilean has grown in influence at the Emirates Stadium this season after showing his ferocity in a No. 9 role, but that has coincided with the forward cutting a frustrated figure as the club appears to be limping to another trophyless campaign.

Sanchez’s current terms expire in 2018, with Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain rumoured to be most keen in acquiring his services and potentially meeting his £250,000-a-week demands.

Sanchez’s involvement in Arsenal affairs has displeased some back in Chile, with a protest organised on Wednesday against him continuing employment in north London. Those voicing their displeasure totalled approximately five to eight people.

Related – Watch: Fewer than 10 people attend protest urging Sanchez to leave Arsenal

While serious doubts rest with Sanchez’s future, there is belief that Mesut Ozil, whose contract also expires in 2018, will eventually agree to a longer stay – although that may depend on whether Wenger stays beyond the current campaign.

Josep Maria Bartomeu says Barcelona’s pursuit for a new manager will be dealt with carefully after Luis Enrique announced he’ll step down at the end of the season following Wednesday’s 6-1 trouncing of Sporting Gijon.

Rumours were rife that Enrique, who admitted he needs a “little time to rest,” would step down in the summer, but the timing of his declaration came as a shock to many of the Blaugrana faithful.

Barcelona’s president, however, intends to take a measured approach in finding Enrique’s successor.

Related: 4 candidates to succeed Luis Enrique at Barcelona

“We will work with discretion, but we will work on it,” Bartomeu promised to Barca TV, with translation from ESPN FC’s Samuel Marsden.

“There are important games coming up and we will try to work quietly.”

Those upcoming commitments include the herculean task of trying to overturn a 4-0 scoreline in the Champions League last-16 second leg against Paris Saint-Germain next Wednesday, with domestic matches against Celta Vigo and Deportivo La Coruna either side of it.

“We have to accept the manager’s decision and support him,” Bartomeu continued.

“In the summer he communicated to (sporting director) Albert Soler and (technical director) Robert Fernandez that this could be his last year, and the other day he told us that he wouldn’t continue and decided this was the ideal moment to reveal his decision.

“Now we have to focus on the next three months, but Luis Enrique will leave in the summer and we’ve had a super manager for these last three seasons.”

Barcelona now aims to give Enrique, who’s collected seven major titles since taking over in 2014, a glittering send-off. After Real Madrid dropped points in a thrilling 3-3 home draw with Las Palmas later on Wednesday, Barcelona holds top spot in La Liga, albeit having played a game more than its Clasico rival.

Bartomeu was clearly encouraged by the 6-1 hammering of Gijon, though.

“It’s a sad situation because he’s a good coach who has given us success,” he added. “The players are (still) motivated, as we’ve seen. There are three competitions and tomorrow there’s training. We have to keep working until the end of June.”

The widely anticipated stepping down of Luis Enrique has been confirmed, with the manager stating he’s fatigued at the helm of Barcelona and is willing to step aside for a fresh outlook at the Camp Nou.

Historically, the Catalonians have looked for coaches entrenched in the methods taught in La Masia’s classrooms and on its pitches, but with the club’s Champions League campaign reaching an inevitable last-16 exit and the threatening emergence of Sevilla, maybe it’s time for a change in approach.

Here are four potential candidates to take the reins on the Mediterranean coast:

Ronald Koeman

Barcelona’s former set-piece expert, one-man engine room, and mentor to Pep Guardiola has been unabashed in his want to return to the club one day.

Koeman’s Everton burst out the traps this season, and arrested a mid-season slump to draw the best out of Romelu Lukaku and Ross Barkley, who was beginning to underachieve following much hype when he broke into the side under Roberto Martinez. On the attack, the Toffees regularly adopt a 4-3-3 shape when Lukaku is sufficiently flanked by the wingers, but to call it Barcelona-esque would admittedly be a stretch.

Related – Frank de Boer: Ronald Koeman deserves Barcelona job

There’s no doubting that he’s well-versed in the Blaugrana ways, however, after he was the fulcrum of the legendary Johan Cruyff’s XI for six years.

But his managerial pedigree is dubious – particularly for a post this illustrious. He’s picked up just five major honours in a 20-year coaching career, and isn’t fondly remembered in Spain after his largely limp stint in charge of Valencia between 2007 and 2008.

Still, not many have fared well as Valencia manager in recent times.

Jorge Sampaoli

A man who insists on high pressing, organised chaos, and an aesthetic, swarming attack, Sevilla boss Sampaoli could be just the man to shake up a weathering Barcelona.

He’s an assiduous handler, watching tape after tape of upcoming opponents and drilling his squads in the minute details of how to stymie individual players – ask Lionel Messi, who was nullified both times as Sampaoli’s Chile topped Argentina in back-to-back Copa America finals.

Most notably, he’s an advocate of fluid, rapid attacks, something that has seen seemingly superior sides cower in their own forward forays due to their concern at being caught on the back foot. He’s on course to deliver a better domestic performance than Unai Emery could muster in his three years as Sevilla gaffer.

Sampaoli hasn’t exactly ruled himself out of the job, either.

“If he leaves, there will be an enormous list of candidates. I see it very far away, although the good moment of Sevilla means that people look at their coach,” he said in January, as quoted by The Telegraph’s Matt Law.

Massimiliano Allegri

Allegri is strongly linked to the well-worn bum groove belonging to Arsene Wenger in Arsenal’s technical area, but the plush seats at the Camp Nou undoubtedly have a greater draw.

Unless he’s allowed to flex his financial muscles further at Juventus, Allegri may believe he’s taken the Turin giant as far as it can go. Building on the foundations that Antonio Conte laid, the 49-year-old is en route to Serie A and Coppa Italia titles for a record third straight season. And although the Old Lady is perhaps unfairly written off for the Champions League crown – currently on odds of 7/1 to win the thing – she made short work of FC Porto in their last-16 first leg.

Some may point to Allegri’s underwhelming performances before taking the Juve gig, but his tactical versatility – he freely tweaks his shape and personnel before or during tilts, and often successfully so – will be seen as a huge plus in the attributes of a relatively young manager.

Gerard Lopez

Barcelona’s penchant to hire from within or from faces which adorn the alumni pages will have Gerard Lopez hoping for a sharp trajectory from the B side.

The 37-year-old was quietly efficient in a Barcelona side of the noughties that tended to fall under the shadow of Real Madrid’s Galacticos – showing the technique and accurate passes of so many La Masia graduates – and picked up the primera prize in 2005, his last season with the club as a player.

His appointment could be a crowd-pleasing decision, too, as he’s staunchly Catalonian. Hailing from Granollers, a Barcelona metropolitan area with both industrial and agricultural history, Gerard took his undeniable work ethic to the Catalonia national team in 2013. There, he’s overseen the likes of Xavi, Gerard Pique, and Sergio Busquets.

He’s been in charge of Barcelona B since 2015, honing the skills of the club’s finest progressing through its famed youth academy. His recent students include Granada loanee Sergi Samper, and current young standouts Seung-Woo Lee and Carles Alena.

(Photos courtesy: Reuters)