2 – He’s Something Different To Giroud
We tried it with Alexis, he wasn’t the right man for the job. We tried it with Welbeck, but the injury curse hit too soon. Now, Perez can offer us something new up top.
Upon reflection you begin to realise just how different the left-footed striker is to Giroud, who has come under fire after failing to establish himself as a lethal finisher.
The point I’m trying to make is that Perez won’t simply come in and replace Giroud, but he gives us so much more of an option to play people in their strongest position.
Alexis can now thrive on the left-wing, whilst Giroud gives us an aerial threat should we need to use that, not because it’s the only thing we have to offer up top.
Arsenal, their formation and the way they score goals has become so predictable that any team feel they can have a go at us on match-day, so Perez can strike that fear factor again.
When looking at the stats, Giroud completed 11 successful take-ons last season, compare that to Perez’s 38 and all of a sudden you see what we’re dealing with.
Having watched his goals from past seasons, Perez isn’t afraid to have a go at the defence and rather than sitting and deciding whether to shoot, that can only be a good thing.
Strength is where the concern comes in, with a significant difference between the two in who can hold off a defender and get to the ball first, Giroud is way ahead on that.
That’s something Perez will have to adapt to, especially after coming from the Spanish division where attacking play is so much more open.
The two can barely be separated on goals though, Perez got himself 17 league goals whilst Giroud managed one less, so there’s definitely room for much-needed competition.