da leao： Arsenal have received a timely boost ahead of tonight’s Carabao Cup clash…
What’s the latest?
da brwin： The Gunners kickstart their first domestic cup campaign of the season with a trip to the Hawthorns to face West Bromwich Albion in the second round later this evening.
Mikel Arteta’s squad have lost back-to-back league matches, so a different competition could be a welcome sight and the Spaniard has been given a major boost ahead of kick-off.
Arsenal will be able to welcome back striker Alexandre Lacazette to the side after the 30-year-old returned to first-team training this week. He had missed both their opening two matches, against Brentford and Chelsea, due to testing positive for Covid-19.
Timely boost
The north London giants couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start this season as they sit 19th in the Premier League standings and with defending champions Manchester City at the weekend, it could get even worse.
This evening’s encounter with the Championship outfit could instil some extra morale and confidence into the side, heading into that fixture, and their chances of getting a result are boosted with the return of the talismanic Frenchman.
In his absence, the Gunners have struggled to find the net. Indeed, they are yet to score this term after suffering back-to-back 2-0 defeats. Across both of those matches, Arteta’s squad have registered only seven shots on target.
Lacazette found the net 13 times in 31 appearances in the Premier League last season, whilst he also averaged 1.5 shots per game, which is slightly below his career average of 2.1, via WhoScored, but that shows that he’s a constant threat up front.
Not one Arsenal player has managed more than an average of two shots per game thus far, further highlighting the need for the former Lyon man in attack.
Arteta really needs to pick up a result against the Baggies, otherwise, there could well be pressure mounting on his position in the dugout, particularly after such a disastrous start.
He will surely be buzzing with the news that Lacazette is available for selection.
AND in other news, “Huge chances”: Fabrizio Romano drops Arsenal transfer claim, fans will be delighted…