Wenger explains Lacazette substitutions

Lacazette joined Arsenal form Lyon last summer for £53million, and played 90 minutes on his debut, scoring in Arsenal's 4-3 win over Leicester.

However, since then, Lacazette has completed just six of 27 league games, with the French international falling further down the pecking order following the arrival of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in January.

Speaking to the Arsenal magazine, Wenger defended his decision to frequently substitute Lacazette, saying that it is mainly down to his position as a striker.

"I must say that [Lacazette] plays in a position where you sub more than say a defender," he explained.

"You substitute a striker more than you would a defender, because they always have to provoke, to defend, to attack, you have to create holes in the defences. The strikers are more subbed than others. 

"Secondly, he was in an adaptation period where I felt that, without any objective measurement, that sometimes he struggled a bit more in the second part of the game, especially in the last 20 minutes, to create the movement he can.

"I put that down to an adaptation period. It was not so much physically – that didn't drop so much – it just looked like he was a bit less sharp."

Lacazette returned to training on Monday following six weeks out with a knee injury and is likely to spearhead Arsenal's challenge for the Europa League, with Aubameyang ineligible.