Arsenal star Emile Smith Rowe says that he has got his confidence back and is ready to “just go for it” at the North London club after a tough time with injuries. 

The 23-year-old started his first match for Arsenal in 499 days on Wednesday night as Mikel Arteta’s side beat Brentford 1-0 in the Carabao Cup.

The game was the Englishman’s 100th appearance for Arsenal but it was a long time coming due to injuries the player has suffered over the last year.

The Arsenal star underwent surgery to overcome a long-standing groin problem last September but suffered a setback on his return four months later before making eight appearances off the bench at the back end of last season.

The 2021/22 season was a big year for Smith Rowe and having regained his confidence back, the Gunners midfielder is now ready to reproduce the form he showed throughout that campaign.

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Speaking after the Brentford match, Smith Rowe stated that he is just going to go for everything now having had a change in mentality.

The 23-year-old said via the Daily Mail: “I have changed a bit of my mentality … just to go for it. I have not really got anything to lose. I have tried to change that inside me.

“I used to have a lot of doubts. I used to question my confidence, at times. But now I am really strong. I am feeling really fit and I am taking that into now.

“The gaffer has really helped me with that. He was helping me through my injury and often pulled me for chats about how I can be mentally stronger.

“I tried to support the boys as much as I could when I couldn’t help them on the pitch. It was really tough but I am stronger now.”