Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner has thrown his weight behind English-born Ghanaian attacker Eddie Nketiah to rediscover his form.
Nketiah, who joined Palace in the summer from Arsenal has struggled to settle due to an injury setbacks.
The 25-year-old has scored one goals and provided two assists in 13 games across competitions.
At the weekend, Nketiah delivered an assist as Crystal Palace defeated Brighton and Hove Albion 3-1.
Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s clash, Oliver Glasner has backed Nketiah to flourish despite sloppy start.
“He’s (Nketiah) very ambitious, he’s working hard and was thrown back with an injury then not coming back. Then in this period, especially at the end of his injury, the team started to win games and playing better and better.
“Then it’s about waiting for your chance. He had a very positive impact together with Daichi Kamada at Brighton, because we struggled heavily at the beginning of the second half because we didn’t get pressure on the ball. As soon as they came on, they worked very hard.
“We got the game more under control, we created chances, he had the assist to Ismaila Sarr by winning an aerial duel against Lewis Dunk. He had a big chance himself as well and we could see then that maybe he doesn’t have the highest confidence.
Meanwhile, Glasner is hoping Nketiah will find the net against his former outfit at the Emirate Stadium.
“And that’s what’s completely normal when you’re a striker, he wants to score, I see this every day in training. But in my experience, if a player works as hard as he is working, he will get the reward – and of course it would be a great story if he scores at the Emirates Stadium.”
