Arsenal captain Alexandre Lacazette has admitted he's in discussions with "a lot of clubs" over a summer transfer.
The 30-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season and is free to talk to clubs not based in England. It's unclear whether he will remain at the Emirates after a tough season in front of goal, finding the back of the net just six times in all competitions.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted the club are looking for a new striker this summer. Eddie Nketiah, the only other senior striker on the books at the Emirates, is also out of contract in June. The 22-year-old hasn't scored in the Premier League this season.
Scoring goals has been Arsenal's biggest problem this season. They've found the back of the net just 45 times in the Premier League, the worst return among top-seven clubs. As a result, the Gunners have lost their last three games to slip to sixth in the table.
"I am in discussions with a lot of clubs," Lacazette told Canal Plus. "I am open... I have never cut contact with Lyon since I left. I try to return to the club once or twice a year to see the medical staff because we are really close. Lyon knows that I am free, they have come to the information."
Lyon's prospects of landing Lacazette depend on where they finish in the table. The French giants, who lost to West Ham in the Europa League on Thursday, are currently eighth in Ligue 1 - seven points behind Rennes in the final Champions League spot.
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"It’s a bit more complicated", added Lacazette. "I want to play in Europe, it’s been a long time since I played in the Champions League, I’m missing it. It’s a little more complicated, nothing is impossible in life, but it’s a little more complicated."
Arsenal's hopes of signing a prolific replacement will depend on whether they can recover their untimely slump and clinch fourth. They're currently three points behind Tottenham in fourth with a game in hand. The two teams meet on May 12.
"He puts the ball in the net, that’s priority number one," said Arteta when asked about what he wants from a future striker last month. Goal threat. Any successful team needs enough goal threat in the squad. Without it, you have nothing.
"You can play good football but you need enough goal threat in the team. The other thing is that he has to complement the other people we have, personally and on the pitch, and for that, we need the right profile.
"We need a profile where you can exploit his qualities at the same time as the qualities we already have, so we don’t have to transform our way of playing again to adapt to that specific player.
"He has to have a certain age, a certain level of experience, and he has to be able to come here and play under the pressure of being at Arsenal."
