Is Arsenal No 9 Cursed….?

Looking at history in Arsenal Football Club you would realize the greatest Arsenal strikers chose a different shirt number as for Thierry Henry it was 14 and Denis Bergkamp chose number 10.

Both players were offered the No 9 jersey but snubbed it and maybe its proofs the mythical thinking under the iconic jersey.Over the past years the club has failed to field a great striker in the iconic shirt.

In defense the club can only boast of only two players to use the iconic shirt with them being Nicolas Anelka and Jose Antonio Reyes. Even though Alan Smith wore it frequently it was before permanent numbers were a thing and neither was Paul Merson a striker.

1. Davor Suker (1999-2000)

After the 1998 world cup Suker won the world cup golden boots with six goals in the tournament. The Croatian was unlucky to have to fight for his place against the arsenal legends both Thierry Henry and Denis Bergkamp. It limited his play time and was sold to Westham after a single season one would like to forget.

• Francis Jeffers (2001-2004)

With a big price tag comes responsibility… and the former England striker arrived at Arsenal with a strong reputation with four great years with Everton FC. He never came close to Henry standard in three years and scored only four premier league goals. He was later sold to Charlton after being loaned to former club Everton.

• Julio Baptista (2006-2007)

Despite scoring four against Liverpool in league cup win and Tottenham twice in league competition his premier league appearances of 24 made him score only 3 premier league goals. The Brazilian was on loan from Real Madrid and spent a single season.

• Eduardo (2007-2010)

Having started his Arsenal career by storm it all ended up with a broken leg and ankle dislocation causing him one year on the sideline. And after the injury its sad that he was never the same again for the brazil-born Croatian international. He departed a year later with only eight premier league goals.

• Park Chu-Young (2011-2014)

Having joined Arsenal at 26 yrs. from Monaco it remains the worst signing any arsenal fan can think of. He played just once in the premier league where neither did he assist or score.Since being sold he has rotated through three clubs Celta Vigo, Watford and Al-Shabab respectively. But now a Shinning star in his native country Fc Seoul scoring 48 goals in 173 games.

• Lukas Podolski (2012-2015)

Most can argue differently due to his 31 goals tally but he played more often at flanks than a striker. Many can agree he was never a No. 9 though he wore the jersey.

• Lucas Perez (2016-2017)

From 17 Laliga goals to just only one in premier league under Arsene Wenger he loaned back to Deportivo when arsenal signed Lacazette and was handed the jersey immediately despite Lucas fuming about the ugly gesture. He was sold to Westham and later moved to Alves in Spain where he is currently at.

• Alexandre Lacazette (2017-present)

Having already scored 34 goals from 87 appearances seems a good progress. But when the cost of the player is factored in the cost of £46.5m can’t be ignore. As time goes, we will tell If he joins the list but after lockdown fallout its more leaning on one direction.