At the start of this season, there was hope Alexandre Lacazette might have finally rediscovered his goal-scoring touch at Arsenal.
He found the net in each of the opening three games, against Fulham, West Ham United and Liverpool, and it seemed he had regained his confidence and self-belief.
A few weeks on, though, and fans are beginning to lose patience yet again. Lacazette has not scored since late September, embarking on another frustrating drought that shows no real sign of coming to an end.
It is almost a microcosm of his Arsenal career: brief promise that soon becomes resigned disappointment. Lacazette was once a prolific striker - he scored 37 goals in his final season at Lyon - but those days seem behind him.
By now, the general consensus is that the Frenchman is standing in the way of Eddie Nketiah, a forward eight years younger and with significant potential. There are plenty urging Mikel Arteta to play Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as the team’s central striker, too, rather than wide on the left.
Arsenal’s attacking play this term has often been laboured and unimaginative, and a goal return of nine in eight Premier League games is simply not enough. Only five teams - three of which currently occupy the relegation spots - have scored fewer.
Inevitably, when goal-scoring is an issue, the focus turns to the team’s No.9, typically the focal point in attack. In truth, Lacazette has always played second fiddle to Aubameyang. He is an intelligent footballer, a player capable of linking up with others in the final third and accentuating his teammates’ strengths.
He has proved effective in the past, but not this season. Admittedly, there is an obvious lack of creativity in Arsenal’s midfield, and Arteta’s focus on tactical discipline and defensive organisation appears to have stunted his side as an attacking unit.
It will not have helped that Lacazette missed an easy chance with his side a goal down in Sunday night’s 3-0 defeat against Aston Villa. That led to a wave of criticism on social media.
Football, of course, is a sport in which permanent conclusions are too often drawn from temporary situations, but in this case it seems Lacazette, perhaps for his own good, would be best to move on, particularly given clubs were interested over the summer.
If goals continue to prove elusive, he will soon become a scapegoat. And from Arsenal’s perspective, the France international is clearly not the future of this team. He will be 30 next year, with his best seasons behind him.
It feels very much like there is a need to refresh things in the final third. With Gabriel Martinelli still to return and Nketiah showing promise, Arteta has options.
Playing Aubameyang centrally, meanwhile, could be the solution to the issues last season’s top scorer has had so far this term.
“We will consider those things when we look back at all the games we played since the last international break,” said Arteta after the Villa defeat. “It depends on who’s in good form, good spirits and we will try to make the right adjustments.”
A humbling loss against Villa at the Emirates felt like a potential turning point for this Arsenal team. If there are going to be wholesale changes to the starting XI, now is the time to make them.
For Lacazette, his race might not yet be run. But he is rapidly approaching the finish line.
