Arsenal v West Brom – Carling Cup 3rd Round

Arsenal rediscovered some of their early season form on the weekend, as they thumped Wigan 4-0 in the Premier League. This was after a much tougher than expected away fixture in the Champions League, where the Gunners had to fight their way back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 in the second half. That was maybe the wake-up call which they needed after losing to both Manchester teams in the league. West Brom get to visit the Emirates and they can likely bank on playing against much of Arsenal’s youth team. Arsene Wenger is no stranger to putting a lot of trust in his youngsters when it comes to cup ties, and usually likes to run the Carling Cup challenge that way.

That doesn’t mean that the Gunners will be walkover because of that. Arsenal are proud of their youth system, and continuously watch their home bred crop flourish. It was their youngsters which hammered Sheffield United 6-0 at the same stage of last year’s Carling Cup. Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere are two of the young Gunners to watch out for, with a lot of speculation surrounding their potential future international careers.

Ex-Chelsea player and now manager of West Brom, Roberto Di Matteo, has brought his classy Italian style of management to the midlands. The Baggies currently sit atop the Championship after an impressive start, and have yet to suffer a defeat so far. This will be a big night for West Brom, who will ride into London on the back of a 5-0 thrashing of third placed Middlesbrough. That should make for an entertaining and fairly even contest. As has been shown before, the gulf between the top of the Championship and even the bottom of the Premier League is quite wide, and Arsenal’s youngsters will be keen to impress at home in front of the boss.

Arsenal to win – 4/9 at Totesport
Draw – 7/2 at Betfred
West Brom to win – 7/1 at Bet365

Betting Tip: Always a tough one to call when a team of mostly youngsters take to the field. West Brom are looking in decent shape and have recent Premier League experience. Wenger is very canny and does not only place trust in his young players, but also expects them to prove their worth and progress. Being at home too, they should just have the edge.