Arsene Wenger has lifted the lid on his decision to drop Alexandre Lacazette to the bench for Arsenal‘s clash with West Ham.
Olivier Giroud comes into the Gunners’ starting XI at the London Stadium after grabbing a last-gasp equaliser for his side in a tough 1-1 draw away at Southampton at the weekend.
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Wenger admits Lacazette was still struggling with a slight groin problem at St Mary’s and believes Giroud deserves the nod against David Moyes’ men.
Asked about his decision the drop Arsenal’s club-record signing, Wenger told BT Sport: ‘Lacazette, despite all that was said, I played him a little bit with his groin problem and I don’t want to go overboard.
‘Olivier Giroud is doing very well. Many times I’ve repeated that, it’s not irregular.
‘For me, Giroud is a regular and, yes, he came on the other day and gave us a point again.
Wenger expects to face a spirited West Ham off the back of their 1-0 victory over Chelsea.
‘You prepare for your opponent to be fully committed – that’s what they did against Chelsea,’ Wenger said.
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‘They defended well, they were sharp on the break and you expect to face that same kind of spirit.’
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