Alexandre Lacazette scored a hat-trick as Arsenal defeated Brentford B 4-1 in a behind closed doors friendly on Wednesday afternoon. Experienced defender Rob Holding netted the north Londoners' other goal whilst Julian Jeanvier scored a consolation goal for the west London club.
The likes of Bernd Leno, Nuno Tavares and Eddie Nketiah all started the game for the Gunners, with youngsters Charlie Patino, Miguel Azeez and Zak Swanson also playing from the off. Now, football.london has taken a look through the photos from the game and detailed below what we spotted as Mikel Arteta's side prepare for Monday's return to Premier League action when they take on Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Leno continues
Arsenal goalkeeper Leno continued between the sticks on Wednesday afternoon after he deputised for Aaron Ramsdale during the 1-0 win over Aston Villa earlier this month. The England international picked up a hip injury ahead of the clash at Villa Park and Arteta confirmed that he would be out for a number of weeks.
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Speaking to BT Sport ahead of the match, the Spaniard said: "Aaron Ramsdale had a muscle injury and will be out for a few weeks." Leno was able to register a clean sheet that day, providing a late save to deny Brazilian playmaker Phillipe Coutinho and it appears likely that he will be goal on Monday night against Palace unless Ramsdale makes a speedy recovery before then.
Lacazette given confidence boost
French forward Lacazettte has led the line for the north Londoners ever since Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was stripped of the club's captaincy back in December following a disciplinary dispute. Aubameyang eventually left for Barcelona during the January transfer window and Lacazette has stepped up to the plate extremely well.
The former Lyon frontman has provided an impressive seven Premier League assists this term but goals have been harder to come by, netting just four times in the league, two of which have come from the penalty spot. Despite the fact that his hat-trick on Wednesday came against Brentford's B team, it is still an important confidence booster for the 30-year-old, who will need to be firing on all cylinders for the remainder of the campaign if Arteta's side are to qualify for next season's UEFA Champions League.
The north London outfit are currently fourth in the standings, three points ahead of Tottenham Hotspur, who they also have a game in hand on.
Holding gets armband
The aforementioned Lacazette has donned the captain's armband ever since it was taken away from Aubameyang. Scottish left-back Kieran Tierney has been handed the honour in the Frenchman's absence and it was English centre-half Rob Holding that stood in when Lacazette was substituted late on.
Holding is one of the longest-serving players at the club, joining from Bolton in the summer of 2016 for just £2million. A number of Arsenal's first-team squad have heaped praise on the commanding defender's leadership, with Tierney lauding his teammate's ability to look after other members of the squad.
“Who is the most wholesome member of the squad?” Tierney was asked in a recent video on Arsenal’s YouTube channel. The former Celtic star replied: “That’s an easy one, it’s you Rob.
"Seriously, the best guy on the team, helps everyone when they’re down and it speaks volumes because he can go through tough times himself and he still wants to help everybody else. So it’s Rob."
