Arsenal are set to face PSV Eindhoven in the round of 16 of the Champions League.
The draw was made on Friday, with the Gunners matched up against a familiar opponent.
The North London outfit have played the Dutch side in each of the last two seasons, winning both the home games, whilst not managing three points in either of the away clashes.
Mikel Arteta’s team will be seriously depleted in the forward areas ahead of the trip to the Netherlands next week, with the likes of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli still expected to be out.
Former Arsenal forward Lucas Perez was available on a free transfer, and could’ve been acquired as an emergency signing by Arteta, but instead the Spaniard has signed for PSV.
Lucas Perez cannot play for PSV against Arsenal in the Champions League
After PSV announced their latest signing, many fans were fretting over the prospect of Perez haunting Arsenal in the Champions League.
However, contrary to popular belief, Perez won’t be eligible to play against the Gunners due to a specific UEFA rule.
The regulation states that ahead of the knockout phase, clubs were able to register a maximum of three new players (from their initial league phase squad) by midnight on the 6th of February.
Perez completed his move to PSV on Saturday, a few weeks after this deadline, therefore meaning he won’t take any part in the Eredivisie giants’ European exploits this season.
He’ll be limited to helping Peter Bosz’ side domestically, in the league and in the Dutch cup.
With former players historically tending to perform well against Arsenal, Gunners fans will be relieved that the ex-Deportivo player won’t be able to taunt them at the Philips Stadion or the Emirates.
Lucas Perez did not enjoy his spell at Arsenal
Having scored 17 La Liga goals in the 2015/16 season for Deportivo La Coruna, Arsene Wenger opted to splash £17 million on Perez late in the summer transfer window in 2016.
Bought to provide cover and competition for the likes of Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck, the number nine was hardly given the opportunity to stake a claim to play ahead of these two players.
| Lucas Perez’ Arsenal Statistics (All Competitions) | |
| Appearances | 21 |
| Starts | 9 |
| Goals | 7 |
| Assists | 5 |
Netting seven goals in 21 appearances for the North Londoners, the forward returned to Deportivo the following summer on loan, before eventually leaving permanently in 2018 for West Ham.
Perez has been named in Arsenal’s worst eleven of the 21st century, with the perception being that he was a panic buy in a difficult period for the club, with these circumstances surrounding his signing meaning fans don’t have fond memories of him.
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