If you are one of the few Arsenal fans who haven’t Googled him yet, Lucas Perez plied his trade in La Liga with Deportivo La Coruna.
Regardless, the forward enjoyed a prolific season in a league dominated by Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid. He contributed to 25 goals last term in 36 appearances, scoring 17 and assisting eight en route to a 13th- finish.
The forward racked up 38 successful dribbles whilst creating 72 chances playing as a main striker in 2015/16. Furthermore, he also earned a 79 per cent pass completion. These are impressive stats for a man who reportedly only costs £17m.
A late bloomer would be the best way to describe Lucas’ rise to fame, as a once promising youngster faded and risked wasting an exciting career before making his return in his home country. He was first spotted by Atletico Madrid as a 17-year-old, joining Los Rojiblancos to play for their C team.
However, after failing to make it anywhere near the senior squad, he moved on to Rayo Vallecano. He also failed to make his mark there, and was soon off to Karpaty Lviv, followed by fellow Ukrainian club Dynamo Kiev.
It was at this point when Perez’s career looked to be on the brink of total collapse, but a transfer to PAOK salvaged everything for the Spaniard. His first season with the Greek club saw him score 10 and assist 15 playing as a winger.
That is when Deportivo came calling, though initially on a loan deal. By the summer of 2015, Lucas signed a permanent deal with Branquiazuis before going on to finish the season as their top scorer.
Lucas Perez had made only one appearance in the new 2016/17 season in Spain, but contributed to two goals – scoring one and assisting another.
Perez is versatile due to his experience playing as both a lone striker and a winger. Unfortunately, versatility usually manifests into being played out of a player’s favoured position.
Perez would definitely deputise for Giroud when needed – in times of injury and lack of form. Nonetheless, the Spaniard will likely play alongside the Frenchman. This means an attacking three of Lucas, Olivier, and Alexis will most probably be Wenger’s go-to lineup.
Perez is certainly an exciting prospect that could easily excite the fans.