Lacazette agrees Lyon return

Alexandre Lacazette has reached an agreement with Olympique Lyon to return to his boyhood club upon the expiry of his contract with Arsenal this summer, according to The Athletic.

The French striker rose through the youth setup at Lyon and earned a place in the senior squad in 2009, at the age of 18. Eight years later, Arsenal swooped in and paid almost £50 million to secure his services, as Arsene Wenger tried to get his team back on track in what would be his final season in the Emirates dugout. Between then and now, Lacazette scored 71 goals and provided 36 assists in 209 appearances in all competitions for the Gunners, and those numbers are now practically certain to be final.

There was talk about the 31-year-old possibly returning to Lyon throughout the season. The striker himself refused to rule it out, while Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas and general manager Vincent Ponsot spoke openly about their desire to make it happen.