West Bromwich Albion have confirmed the absence of Matt Clarke and others ahead of their Carabao Cup clash against Arsenal.

The Baggies take on the Gunners on Wednesday in the second round of the competition.

Two unnamed Baggies players are positive with COVID-19, while Clarke has a hamstring issue that could keep him out for five or six weeks.

On Clarke, manager Valerien Ismael said, per the Express and Star: "We received yesterday the information that he will miss a lot of games – five to six weeks.

"We need to deal with the situation. It's bad news for us, but it is what it is.

"You can't influence injuries or Covid. They're two situations we have to deal with.

"Now we have first case of injury, so we need to make sure he recovers well and comes back stronger.

"It's a good thing that the season is very long in the Championship, so we'll see him soon."

He added: "We have two Covid cases with players. So, we need to make sure everything is in the right way.

"They need to isolate. It's a medical case so I can't give the information.

"Covid is always a worry at the minute. You cannot control this.

"You can only get the jab and make sure you do the right thing, but we knew from the beginning we had to deal with injuries and Covid.

"We'll deal with the situation and next week is an international break, so we'll have more time to get the players back."