Ethan Nwaneri has made four appearances for the Arsenal first team this season. The youngster started one game and made a substitute appearance in the other four.
The midfielder’s first and only start of the season was against Bolton Wanderers in the League Cup. Nwaneri scored a brace in a 5-1 win.
The 17-year old has made impressive cameos in the North London derby, and came on to make an impact in last week’s game against Bournemouth.
The midfielder is highly rated at Arsenal, and was tipped by Cesc Fabregas to breakout this season:
“I have no doubt, that if Mikel [Arteta] puts him in the starting 11, or even on during the game, it’s because he’s seen that he’s good enough to make an impact.
“He’s on his [Arteta’s] mind and if he’s part of the squad it’s because he really believes that he can bring something to the table.”
Ian Wright believes Arsenal should trust Ethan Nwaneri
Arsenal have had a problem in midfield since Martin Odegaard was injured early in the campaign. The lack of creativity in the middle of the park has been glaring.
And with Saka also absent for the past few games, Arsenal have not been able to move the ball progressively. Ian Wright has suggested that Nwaneri get a run of games in the team, to try and get a creative spark for Arsenal:
‘When I saw [Mikel] Merino, [Thomas] Partey and [Declan] Rice – I was thinking [Ethan] Nwaneri, the youngster,’ Wright, said on the Stick to Football podcast.
‘Against Bournemouth, you need someone who can do something [in the middle] and create something, because that’s what was majorly missing.
‘We needed someone to beat someone with the ball – I would have taken a chance on him – I would have had Merino, Rice and Nwaneri playing in there [the No 10], to have something different.’
Arsenal are really lacking creativity and chance creation in attack with Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard sidelined.
The rest of the midfield options for the London club do not have enough quality on the ball to impact games like Saka or Odegaard. This was obvious as Mikel Merino and Declan Rice struggled in advanced positions in the Bournemouth and Shakhtar games.
There is positive news ahead of this weekend; Mikel Arteta has hinted that Bukayo Saka could be involved in the game against Liverpool.