Walcott - The player Lacazette reminds me of

Only one player in Europe’s top five leagues had a better shot conversion rate than Alexandre Lacazette last season.

The France international scored 28 times in 30 Ligue 1 matches, averaging a goal every 86 minutes, and his style of play reminds Theo Walcott of another prolific striker in the Premier League.

“The French league is very physical league but he looks like he’s in good nick,” Walcott told Arsenal Player. “He reminds me a bit of Jermain Defoe in that he sees the target, shoots and scores.

“That’s what I’ve seen of him in little clips, so hopefully he can bring those attributes to the team. There’s loads of competition for places which is healthy as always, but we’re looking strong.

“Pace in the Premier League is the most important thing for me,” Walcott added. “It’s hard because a lot of teams drop back, sit back against us and it’s tight because there’s not a lot of space in behind.

“You have to find different ways of breaking them down but that’s why you’ve got all these clever players like Mesut to get through them differently. Pace is always a threat. When you’re counter-attacking, it wins all the time. As long as we’ve got pace in this team, we’re going to be OK.”