The moment we all feared and a big reason why any long-term title challenge is unrealistic.
Our manager has hinted that the niggle that saw Jesus not travel to Norway in midweek as a precaution might be serious enough for him to be absent this weekend.
That makes Sunday potentially a massive game in the career of Eddie Nketiah, ironically against the club he helped gain promotion while on loan at Elland Road.
Eddie has got two goals in the Europa League, but now on 100,000 pound a week he can’t keep building a reputation on scoring against minnows in the cup competitions.
Yet how many predicted that was where his main source of goals would come from?
5 years on since his Arsenal debut, over 100 appearances and now 23, he can’t keep hiding behind youth and potential.
The reason why I had so much problem with his salary is because for that wage you should be able to trust the player to be an adequate replacement .
Instead, we still don’t know if Eddie can consistently score at this level. I guess 100,000 pound a week doesn’t get you much these days.
You can’t blame Martinelli’s and Saka’s agent asking for figures in the region of 200,000, when their clients are twice the player of someone on 100,000 pounds a week.
Nicholas Bendtner used to excel against minnows such Molde, Zurich, etc and yet was mocked for earning so much.
We all want an academy graduate to progress, but if we are honest has anyone in our history every earnt so much without doing anything.
It’s not an insult to say he might not be good enough for the levels we want to reach, not when you consider the ambitions, we are told the club have.
Eddie did manage a few goal poaching goals in last season’s run in, but only in three games, one of which was on the final day when the pressure was off.
Arsenal had decided to give away Aubameyang without buying a replacement. As Auba scored goals in Spain, that one decision cost us a spot in the Champions League.
It’s not as black and white as the striker getting a tap in and I’m proven wrong.
That was Eddie’s chance.
Compared to Ian Wright, the moment Wright got his opportunity he made it count. Eddie let the moment pass him by.
In 2022 your centre forward has to do so much more. Press, hold up the ball, link up with others, move around.
I’m yet to see the personality from Eddie that he truly believes he can do that on this stage.
He’s like a competition winner, grateful to be here and certainly chuffed that he’s making the money he is.
When he came on in the NLD I knew there would be no more goals.
Again, I’m judging this on the standard of winning a title. Is Eddie that calibre of player?
If it were me, I play Martinelli through the middle, but you can’t be paying a player that much money and then not be trusting him.
If Jesus can’t play against Leeds this is a chance for Eddie to take the baton. Will he drop it or run with it?
Dan Smith
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I guess in a few hours we shall find out. Let’s not be too critical of him yet, we must accept part of the blame, because a player gains experience and improve generally if he is trusted to with more responsibility and game time. Arsenal hasn’t given him much of that and he looks to have lost a little bit of goal confidence. Whoever turns out from that tunnel, we should rally round and support 100% COYG
It’s quite remarkable the same naysayers are having a pop at Eddie considering he hasn’t started a single PL match ! Don’t knock our own player unless he has been given a chance. He has started 3 Europa League matches and scored 2 goals….so he is doing exactly what is being asked of him as back up to Jesus who has been outstanding
Auba on 350,000 a week with an attitude problem forced Arsenal to act.
Instead of blaming Arsenal for it, you should credit Arteta and the rest in management for cleaning out the rotten apples.
While it may have cost us financially short term it has proven to be the best action and thus it will make financially sense long term.
But true, if Jesus can’t play, it is Nketiah’s chance to make his mark: Hope he does, if he starts.
He will prove you wrong, in fact he did it already
Agreed. We used to criticize Ozil and Aubameyang for milking the club while showing very little in return, so it should apply to any 100,000+ pound-a-week player
Productivity isn’t just about goals and assists though. As long as Nketiah can consistently win duels in the front line and does high press frequently, he’d help the team tremendously
The big difference here, of course, is Nketiah gives it his all everytime he is on the pitch where Auba and Ozil did not. Maybe Eddie is not quite as talented as they were but he works harder for far longer than they did in each of their later Arsenal careers.
Yes. Nketiah is still 23, so he must have the stamina and pace to be the team’s first defender
Eddie played well at the end of last season and hope he scores today.
If he’s given a chance to play at Ellen Road, this is it. He needs to show that he can win games for Arsenal without a doubt.
What a load of crap. You credited arsenal’s inability to qualify for the champions league to our decision to let aubameyang leave , yet he was a regular starter for almost 18 games and all he had to show for it was a paltry 4 goals.please get a grip mate.
True. Auba was playing badly for 18 months, so expecting him to be the difference maker at the end of the season would have been beyond hopeful. Nketiah played well during the run in, but the team as a whole bottled it in two key games in particular (spurs and Newcastle), which ultimately cost us top 4. Auba wouldn’t have saved us in those games.
Dobt he will prove that he is worth 100k p/w.
Maybe 25k p/w max, he has not really done anything to warrant that pay imo.
I hope he proves me wrong and can push Jesus.
How many goals had Walcott scored for Arsenal by age 23, yet his productivity was criticized.
Nketiah shows application, without productivity in goal scoring. At £100k per week he has to start hitting the target and scoring goals as an Arsenal forward. I’m with Dan Smith in preferring Martinelli playing through the middle. Hopefully Nketiah will start proving us wrong against his loan club.
One doesn’t have to be a telepath to read your level of secret hatred on Nketiah. Martinelli in the middle?? LOL thank goodness you’re not Arteta. Nketiah is a good lad and he’ll mostly deliver when called upon esp as starter.
Lima, what’s this BS about “hatred”?
lols you guys still believing the idea will come good. iits just like wishing the pope to visit Mecca.it will never happen. let’s face it nketiah just doesn’t have. he’s average just accept that .
5 years and still he can’t get into the starting 11.
Arteta has shown that he will play those who produce.
Nketiah doesn’t get game time because he struggles to produce 5 years in. Tomi had to wait, Tierney had to wait behind Zinchenko, ESR has to wait behind Martinelli and Saka.
Simple, Nketiah struggles to play PL games because he struggles to produce.
This is so short sighted.
I’m not his biggest fan, but last season when he got a good run of games. He popped up with the goals didn’t he? He was a menace wasn’t he?
This season he has started 3 Europa league games, has 2 goals with 1 assist.
Has he started any league games yet?
How many minutes does he get when he comes on?
Nonsense, no more old spoilt players on big wages you guys wanna attack, so let’s make a big deal out of Nketiah, even though his records since last season shows he’s been delivering
No Eddie he didn’t , think Spurs and Newcastle away ….
This is a question though …….
Peeps keep pointing out it doesn’t start in the Prem
Is that not my point though ?
Arteta sees him in training every day right and decides he’s not good enough to start in the Prem
When Fabregas and Wilshire , etc were deemed good enough , they started no matter their age
Just think there a drop off in quality if jesus gets injured
Of course there’s a drop off in quality when our key players aren’t playing. Our rebuilding isn’t finished and we need to recruit more quality players. Perhaps you believe that our squad can’t get better?
Eddie is a very good Striker, the writer makes it sound like this one game is the yard stick for his 100k salary…
Please give him the chance to perform and let’s support him…
Ask anyone, strikers get better with trust of manager and time on the pitch. The Jesus we so love now is seen as a brilliant signing because we gave him what Man City did not.
My point is, the present Nketiah situation is almost like the Jesus own at City. Yes he is not as good as Jesus so am not comparing the players but the game time and trust given.
I’m not sure he as played up to 90mins football in the 9 matches of Epl so far…
But 2 goals in 3 is a good return in Europa… It’s just funny that when we win in Europa it means little to people as if it is not a good competition…
I hope Jesus is fit to play too, but if not Nketiah will surely be a good cover for him, Leeds should underate him at their peril.
By the way…
Matineli should andd Zaka should be given 150 max and not 200… Too much money seem to result in gradual decline… Does anyone remember Hodson at Chelsea…
Because 3 years later you can then increase such salary to 230/250 for a prime 24/25 years performer.
This writer has forgotten that Eddie Nkekiah’s goals helped Arsenal at the end of last season, after Lacazzette was injured. That’s why the club persuaded him to stay and bumped up his wages. He will perform well is Jesus’ absence
Arsenal missed on top 4 because Spurs strengthened in January…Bentacur and Kulaveski…Given the squad, Arsenal over achieved. Would we have strengthened with 2 1st teasers like Spurs…We would be in the champions league.
Meeen how come he earns so much, we would have moved him on, yep he is 3 lions under 23 goal record holder, he did scored some awesome goals last season, but I think he is yet to win over the fan base.
Should he approach this game with pressure, then our goals will come from somewhere else from our team…
Nketiah, is not that bad as you think. He can prove you wrong.
As for me, I have already celebrated Arsenal win over Leeds Utd in the Epl today ahead of the time the match will be played and the result is known.
I’ve played some of my recorded good musics that I like and listened to them enjoying myself and now relaxing.
This is so because I am very confident of Arsenal beating Leeds Utd in today’s afternoon Epl match at Elland Road unfailingly. Even Leeds Utd themselves know that the vast superiority gap that Arsenal have over them in the game as the table indicates it. They don’t stand a chance in the game to steal a point in the match. Which if they succeeded at doing, (God forbids) could cause a havoc to Arsenal early season title win charge.
And I have already given my backing to Eddie Nkethia to come good for Arsenal in the match if he start. And I haven’t change my position on this.
So many nonsense statements in this article that I don’t know where to start🤦
Start again to prove YOUR opinion is right? Let say after the game finish..you must be fat and obesity now because so much humble pie you eat..😂😂😂
People expect too much from Nketia in my opinion.He is a back up striker and has performed well in Europa where he gets to play the entire game. It would be absurd to ask Nketia to score lots of goals in the Epl where he gets only a few minutes towards the end of the match.
For perspective,compare him with back-ups from other teams. Is Haaland’s back up as good as Haaland? Is Kane’s ?
Finally, I think we should discuss the merits of a player based on their outputs on the pitch and not their transfer fees or earnings.I’m not even sure those of us who throw around these figures know for sure what the players earn. Unless you’re familiar with the details of the contract,it’s all speculation.
Premature and somewhat melodramatic article with a baffling focus on wages rather than football! As someone already said, let’s wait and see.
WHAT A POINTLESS ARTICLE , GIVEN THE FACT JESUS WAS ALWAYS GOING TO BE FIT!!. So Eddie if he plays at all, will only be a late sub.
Thank God he didn’t
What an entirely useless article!
There is no reasoned football debate, no other agenda than the writer’s own personal bias against a player who doesn’t deserve this kind of vitriol.
It’s been rendered even more ridiculous because Gabriel Jesus did start the game against Leeds, and EN was a late substitute yet again with precious little time to contribute anything more than fresh legs to help protect the lead and seal the win.
So far this season, Eddie Nketiah has 2 goals + 1 assist in 3 Europa League games, all of which he has started.
In the Premier League, he has been a late substitute in all 10 games … but for a grand total of 107 minutes.
To put this into clearer context:
Mikel Arteta has used 21 players in PL games this season.
Marquinhos and Nwaneri have appeared for 1 min each, so let’s not count them.
Of the remaining 19, 15 players have more minutes than Nketiah, and only 3 who have had fewer.
Of those 3, Elneny has 90 from his one start. ESR has 48 minutes because of his recurrent injury, and Holding has 11 minutes because of William Saliba.
In every single match this season, for every one of the few minutes he has played, I have watched EN play his heart out. He runs endlessly, and does the job he’s been asked to do. When he does start, he scores.
Stop bashing on him simply because you have nothing better to write about because it will be better to not write at all.
P.S. What does Auba scoring in Spain have to do with anything at all?
It did NOT cost us 4th spot. He had stopped scoring for us long before he was allowed to leave. He had 4 goals before he left. Jesus, Saka, and Martinelli all have at least 4 already this season. Eddie Nketiah has 2 in 3 starts!
Plus, if Auba had indeed been THAT fantastic, Barca would not have sold him on 6 mnths later.
We lost 4th spot due to a combination of inexperience, nerves, injury to Thomas Partey, and the very presence of players like Auba in our squad. Now they have left, look at the team’s performances!
Unless you are a Spuds fan, you need to wake up, smell the coffee, and stop writing such trash!
If we hadn’t signed Eddie Nketiah it would have been an alternative cost without necessarily a better outcome. Before being too negative we should check the average salary for a striker in a top four club in the PL.
Perhaps it is not the salary of Nketiah that is Dan’s real objection, but rather a question for or against the player?