Arsenal v Coventry: Wenger to unleash the Ox against Sky Blues

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is getting ready to unleash Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain when Coventry are the visitors to the Emirates Stadium in the FA Cup Fourth Round.

The Ox continued his comeback from injury with 64 minutes for Arsenal’s under-21 team in front of the watchful eyes of the Frenchman.

After brief cameo appearances in the Premier League wins over Aston Villa and Fulham the Frenchman is now ready to let loose the England international on Steven Pressley’s side as the Gunners look to book a place in the next round.

Arsenal are as short as 1/9 for the win and Coventry, who are 18/1 for victory in north London, will not have fond memories of the Emirates Stadium with their most recent visit ending in a 6-1 defeat in last season’s Capital One Cup.

That night Chamberlain was on the score-sheet and after six months on the sidelines since injuring his knee in the opening day defeat to Aston Villa he will be looking to make up for lost time.

And with Theo Walcott out for the rest of the season the 20-year-old has a real opportunity to nail down a starting berth for both club and his country, as this summer’s World Cup draws ever closer.

Therefore it could pay to back a determined Chamberlain to score the first goal of the game against the Sky Blues at 6/1 with Ladbrokes.

The former Southampton man is 7/4 to score at any time on his return from injury and he is a massive 33/1 to be an instant hit and score a hat-trick.

A repeat of last season’s 6-1 scoreline is on at 28/1, while if you fancy adding Chamberlain to score the first goal the scorecast price is a whopping 100/1 with the bookmaker.

But with Coventry scoring at least one goal in their last 11 fixtures, backing an Oxlade-Chamberlain inspired Arsenal to win with both teams to score, at odds of 15/8, could be the smart bet of the night.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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