West Brom vs Arsenal: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain fit to return for Hawthorns visit

Arsenal have been handed a late injury boost ahead of their Saturday (18 March) lunchtime kickoff against West Bromwich Albion after Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain passed a late fitness test to train with the rest of the first-team squad.

The 23-year-old midfielder was labelled a doubt by Arsene Wenger during his pre-match press conference owing to the injury he picked up during the win against the Gunners' 5-0 win over Lincoln City in the FA Cup last weekend (11 March). However, he seemed to have been passed fit by the medical team as he took part in training with the rest of the squad at London Colney before their trip to the Hawthorns.

The England international has been one of the in-form players for the Gunners in recent weeks and his quick return will be a massive boost to the manager: "Back to business in the Premier League tomorrow," Oxlade-Chamberlain wrote alongside a picture of him in training on Friday.

Danny Welbeck and Mohamed Elneny have also returned after recovering from illness and injury respectively leaving Santi Cazorla as the only player currently on the sidelines. The Spaniard is unlikely to return this campaign after undergoing a second surgery to correct a problem in his Achilles.

Wenger has made it clear that they cannot drop any more points if they are to secure a place in the top four this season. The north London club are currently in fifth place five points behind fourth placed Liverpool albeit with two games in hand. Manchester United are just a point behind and are among five teams fighting for three places.

Arsenal have lost three of their last four Premier League games and the Frenchman will be keen to get back to winning ways when they take on the Baggies. A loss is likely to intensify the calls from a section of the club's supporters for Wenger to leave with protests having become a norm in recent weeks.