Arsenal fans are worried former striker Lucas Perez could come back to haunt them in their upcoming Champions League knockout tie against PSV.
Perez recently joined PSV on a free transfer until the end of the season, just over a week away from the first leg of the European tie which begins in Eindhoven on Tuesday, March 4th.
Luckily for fearful Gooners however, the Perez signing came long after the February 6 deadline of which further additions can be made to Champions League squads.
Perez may be able to haunt Arsenal from his presence in the stadium, but he is ineligible to feature on the pitch and can only feature in domestic competitions for his new club.
Arsenal Twitter reacts to PSV signing former Gooner Lucas Perez
Lucas Perez coming back to sign for PSV to knock Arsenal out of the Champions League pic.twitter.com/p1d0pAqlHc https://t.co/rWLAUoyQp6
— Afc Max 🎗️ (@afcmax22) February 23, 2025
PSV have just signed ex-Arsenal forward Lucas Perez.
Not sure anything has ever been as inevitable as him scoring the goal that knocks Arsenal out of the Champions League.
— Paddy Power (@paddypower) February 23, 2025
The 36-year-old made 21 appearances for the Gunners from 2016 to 2018, scoring seven and assisting five in just under 1000 minutes in an Arsenal shirt.
The Spaniard won the only trophy of his career in North London when Arsenal lifted the FA Cup in 2017.
He joined the club at the start of the 2016/17 season for a reported fee of £17 million and bagged an assist on his competitive debut in a 2-1 home win over Southampton in the Premier League.
Later that year, Perez scored a hat-trick in the Champions League after netting three in 39 minutes away from home against FC Basel to help Arsenal win the group.
🗓️ On this day in 2016…
Lucas Perez with a hat-trick against Basel ⚽️⚽️⚽️ pic.twitter.com/LQI7kcY7sY
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 6, 2024
As per the best football betting sites, Arsenal are among the tournament favourites to win the Champions League at a general price of 11/2.
If successful against PSV, Mikel Arteta’s side will face Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final.
