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Andy Carroll Is the West Ham Player Arsenal Will Fear Most This Weekend
- Updated: December 2, 2016
A trip to West Ham ought not be a particularly daunting prospect for Arsenal. The Gunners are in good form in the Premier League, whereas their hosts sit just a point clear of the relegation zone. A switch to a new stadium has come with significant teething problems, and the Hammers are a shadow of the side they were under Slaven Bilic last season.
However, the presence of one player in the West Ham squad will be enough to give Arsene Wenger and his players nightmares. If Andy Carroll is passed fit, West Ham have a chance.
That’s not a certainty. Carroll was expected to be named in the squad for their EFL Cup tie with Manchester United on Wednesday but didn’t make the cut. Nevertheless, per the club’s official website, on the eve of the United game, Bilic suggested Carroll would “definitely” be ready to face Arsenal:
We are going to see what happens today. Andy has a good recovery and has been training with us. If he progresses well and there are not any minor setbacks, he will definitely be ready for Saturday and we will make a decision about the United game after training.
We will assess him after training to see how he is. With Andy we take it on a daily basis.
Perhaps Bilic decided that he’d rather spare Carroll and avoid the risk of a setback at Old Trafford. After all, West Ham need Premier League points far more than a two-legged EFL Cup semi-final. Ordinarily, it would be unthinkable to throw a player straight into the starting lineup after a prolonged absence. However, West Ham are struggling for goals—and Carroll seems to have a particular potency against Arsenal.
The most recent example of that occurred in April earlier this year. Carroll effectively extinguished Arsenal’s slim title hopes with a devastating hat-trick which enabled West Ham to clinch a 3-3 draw despite going 2-0 down.
Arsenal simply couldn’t live with Carroll’s aerial power. It seems one of the crucial factors in his success was the element of surprise—somewhat naively, …
