Barcelona encouraged to join race for Arsenal target Alexandre Lacazette

Barcelona have been urged to join the battle for Arsenal target Alexandre Lacazette. A poll conducted by Catalan publication Mundo Deportivo has revealed the Lyon striker is the fans' preferred candidate to bolster Luis Enrique's squad, beating out the likes of Gabriel Jesus, Jonathan Soriano, Mario Gomez, Lucas Perez, Carlo Bacca and Kevin Gameiro.

The La Liga and Copa del Rey champions are desperately trying to sign a versatile forward to serve as back-up for the MSN trio of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

The likes of Luciano Vietto, Tony Sanabria, Nolito, Hatem Ben Arfa and Ousmane Dembele have all been linked with the role during the current transfer window, but Barcelona have been repeatedly knocked back due to the various players' reluctance to serve as an understudy.

IBTimes UK revealed earlier this week that Newcastle United forward Ayoze Perez has emerged as a shock candidate, while reports in Spain claimed Barcelona are monitoring a number of strikers, including Lacazette himself.

Mundo Deportivo, a publication mainly read by Barcelona fans, has launched a poll on its website asking who the Catalan giants should sign. Lacazette tops the list of options, ahead of the in-demand Gabriel Jesus.

25.93% of readers believe the Lyon striker should be Barcelona's number-one target, while 23.75% voted in favour of the new Brazilian sensation, who has also been linked in recent days with Manchester United and Manchester City. Former Barcelona B number nine Jonathan Soriano, currently at Red Bull Salzburg, is third choice with 17.87% of the votes.

Should Barcelona agree with their fans, they will need to fight Arsenal for Lacazette, who is understood to be Arsene Wenger's main target this summer.

Lyon have already revealed they had rejected a €35m (£29.5m, $38.8m) offer from the Gunners for the 25-year-old striker, who netted 23 goals in 44 appearances last season for the Ligue 1 side.

"The reality is that the Arsenal made ​​an offer of €35m which Olympique Lyonnais did not respond to for one reason only: OL wants to keep Alexandre Lacazette because he is irreplaceable and one of the major leaders of Bruno Genesio's group," Lyon confirmed, denying reports they had also received a €48m bid from Arsenal for the striker.