Eddie Nketiah scored a hat-trick as a much-changed Arsenal marched into the League Cup semi-finals by beating Sunderland 5-1 on Tuesday.
The 22-year-old striker is out of contract at the end of the season and gave potential suitors in the January transfer window a reminder of his predatory prowess in front of goal.
Nicolas Pepe and Charlie Patino on his debut were also on target for the Gunners as the match went ahead at the Emirates without any restrictions on crowd numbers despite London mayor Sadiq Khan declaring a “major incident” in the English capital due to spiralling coronavirus infection numbers.
Arsenal were one of just eight sides in Premier League action last weekend as the wave of Covid cases caused by the new Omicron variant decimated the English football calendar.