ATLETICO MADRID are reportedly set to renew their interest in Arsenal striker Alexandre Lacazette.
ESPN claim Diego Simeone wants more competition to his attack after relying heavily on veteran Luis Suarez to win the LaLiga title last season.
Suarez, 34, scored 21 goals for the Rojiblancos as they tasted domestic glory for the first time in seven years but he cannot continue to shoulder the goalscoring burden alone.
The ex-Barcelona hitman hit the net more than Joao Felix and Angel Correa combined while Moussa Dembele failed to open his account during his loan.
Atleti are now said to see Lacazette as a solution to their striking conundrum, with Simeone a long-term admirer of the Frenchman.
The LaLiga giants were heavily linked with a move for the Arsenal forward last summer and had even tried to sign him when he was at Lyon in 2017.
SunSport revealed Lacazette is now available after the Gunners made the decision not to offer their No9. a new contract.
The French international, 30, is now in the final year of his £175,000-a-week Emirates deal and will become a free agent next summer.
But the club have decided against extending the striker’s stay after previously being panicked into handing huge pay rises to Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Now they are trying to find a buyer willing to pay a fee in the region of £15million as well as Lacazette’s substantial salary.
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And they will only follow up their interest in Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham if Lacazette leaves this summer.
But if there are no offers, manager Mikel Arteta will happily keep the player at the club for the new season as back-up to captain Aubameyang.
Arsenal are looking to step up their transfer activity next week by finalising a £50m deal for Brighton centre-half Ben White.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
