I know he’s only 17, but based off of that cameo, Ethan Nwaneri needs to be starting these sort of games!
After impressing in midweek against Bolton in the EFL cup, Ethan Nwaneri would have been expecting minutes in the game against Leicester three days later, fast forward to the game and he did get some minutes, but maybe not the amount he would have been expecting with the talented midfielder being substituted on in at the 85th minute mark of the game.
Given that we were searching for a winner and he brought him on should serve as an encouragement to him due to the amount of trust it shows that Mikel Arteta has in the player.
This will also be an encouragement to Mikel and to all of us is how he made good use of the little time he was afforded on the pitch, inside 60 seconds of his introduction Nwaneri produced a shot on target with a well taken effort that had to be expertly kept out by Leicester’s Mads Hermansen. The lad was was electric at times with his dribbling injecting life into our attacks towards the end, his ball control and lovely footwork were on display also in that period which will have us all reminiscing of a similar player in our squad, the injured Martin Ødegaard.
Speaking of him, Nwaneri just looks like a more natural backup to our skipper given they both have similar profiles. You obviously can’t expect him to put in the type of performances Ødegaard puts in, but what you’ll get with him starting is offering something close to that.
This will be needed especially against teams like the one we faced recently who are happy to keep everything tight at the back. He can certainly combine well with Saka, the Bolton game and this cameo proves it, and given how our right sided dynamics have been key to our recent title pushes, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to utilise Nwaneri more consistently at least till Ødegaard returns to full fitness.
This cameo will certainly impress Arteta and I hope that it convinces him to play Nwaneri more!!
The PSG clash might be too big for him but the game against Southampton next week should be a perfect game for Arteta to start giving him more playing time.
What would you all rate his cameo against Leicester City out of a ten? Let me know in the comments below!
KENNETH BENJAMIN.
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Let him cook. Managing his hunger is as important as his minutes. I think the minutes will increase as the season goes, if he continues the performances he is giving now.
Give him game time for sure! He deserves it,but remember a 17 year old is rarely going to give consistency but he has earned his chance and more game time starting in the cups and lower placed premier teams may be the slow but steady introduction he needs. Also I would have him on the bench in ALL other games( you never know,his qaulity could change any tie).
I’d give him a solid seven out of ten for his cameo He did well at taking players on and instilling nerves into our opponents And he had one good effort at goal so yeah I’d give him seven
Ethan has until January to prove that he can step in to replace Odegaard
He did good for first attempt
We need to see him more though before we can judge. Give him time in the Cup matches
He needs more time to improve
From what i hav seen from him so far he may rise above whoever we have today, of course in seasons ahead
Didn’t watch the Leicester game, he will get his chances , all he needs to do is keep utilising whatever comes his way that’s the only sure way to earn more playing time. So far he’s doing good.