Manuel Pellegrini is placing his bets on Lucas Perez as he feels the forward can fill up the void of Marko Arnautovic.
Perez came off the bench and his inspirational brace helped the Hammers in picking up an important win against Cardiff City. The former Arsenal forward didn’t start the game but Arnautovic’s injury scare provided him with a much needed chance to prove his worth.
Arnautovic limped off from the pitch what is expected to be a hamstring injury and it remains to be seen whether it is a minor injury or the severity is much bigger than expected. Pellegrini already lost Andriy Yarmolenko and the potential loss of Arnautovic could be a big blow for his future ambitions.
He said, “It’s very important for the team as we won the game. After that for different reasons as he hasn’t started much before this game. The important thing is to have options. It’s unfortunate for Arnautovic – I hope that he [Perez] continues.”
“We improve a lot in the second half. It was a relief. The goal relieved the pressure. That’s why we scored two more goals.
“Cardiff are a difficult team – they only lost 1-0 against Tottenham and Everton. They work very well in the style they like to play.”
