Strike partnerships are a wonderful thing. Some have been so potent and glorious to watch that they’ve gone on to define teams, seasons and even eras at a club. Since the inception of the Premier League in 1992, the English top flight has played host to many great striking pairs. Immediately, the likes of Cole and Yorke, Sutton and Shearer, Henry and Bergkamp spring to mind.

However, in recent years, the prevalence of strike partnerships has diminished significantly. The introduction of new formations and the tactical shift towards attacking midfielders and marauding full-backs has seen the need to play with two up front reduced.

In recent seasons, only the prolific combinations of Luis Suarez and Daniel Strurridge, and Jamie Vardy and Shinji Okazaki during Leicester City’s remarkable title-winning campaign, stand out as great Premier League strike partnerships. 

However, a new double-act may be set to take the division by storm. During the last year, Arsenal have acquired two of the best goalscorers in Europe. In the Gunners’ last match, against Cardiff City, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette were both included in the starting XI for the first time in the Unai Emery era. 

It’s fair to say that it went well. Both the attackers got on the scoresheet as the North London club battled to victory in Wales. Lacazette, in particular, was impressive as he put in a dominant display in the centre-forward berth. Meanwhile, Aubameyang was deployed on the left flank. Unfortunately, this means that the pair can’t yet be considered a striker partnership, but given that both prefer a central role and are players of such supreme quality, Emery must be tempted to shift his system to allow for two up top.

Considering their mutual attributes, Aubameyang and Lacazette certainly have what it takes to form a thriving partnership. The key to any successful partnership on a football pitch is having the correct combinations of strengths and weaknesses between the two players, meaning that where one may struggle the other thrives, and vice versa. 

For instance, in the case of Vardy and Okazaki, their understanding of their own roles was such that rather than getting in one another’s way, they were able to create space and opportunities for each other. Okazaki’s hold up play, vision and creativity was vital in forging goalscoring chances for his prolific partner, who duly fired the Foxes to glory. 

This current Arsenal pair should hope to strike up a similar relationship at the Emirates Stadium if given the chance. Lacazette is extremely comfortable on the ball and boasts the physicality required to effectively hold the ball up in the Premier League. Meanwhile, Aubameyang’s blistering pace allows him to raid behind enemy lines. Together, they could create chaos amongst opposition defences. 

However, in order to get the best out of this potential pairing, Emery must set up the rest of his team in such a way that the Gunners aren’t left vulnerable to being overrun in the centre of the park. 

One way to do so could be to shift to a system that features three centre-backs, and wing-backs, and dispenses with wingers entirely. Arsenal themselves have had some success with this set up in recent seasons and certainly have the personnel in their squad to be able to return to it. 

A shift to three-at-the-back would allow Aubameyang and Lacazette to both line up as central strikers without the team losing their width, as Bellerin and Monreal have the capacity to operate effectively as wing-backs. What’s more, the addition of a third centre-back alongside the current pair of Shkodran Mustafi and Sokratis could go a long way towards making the Gunners more solid than they presently are. Finally, this system would allow Mesut Ozil to take up his favoured No. 10 position - the prospect of the German playmaker providing ammunition for the front two is a tantalising one for Arsenal fans. 

However he does it, if Emery can find a system that allows his two main strikers to thrive side by side, without compromising his defence, then big things can be expected of this Arsenal team.