Arteta must drop Trossard and unleash one of Arsenal’s “biggest jewels”

While there has been some more bad news off the pitch for Arsenal this week regarding the fitness of Martin Odegaard, things have been going rather well on it.

Mikel Arteta’s side picked up their third away win in as many years against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and did so without their captain or Declan Rice in the team, setting things up perfectly for Sunday’s top-of-the-table clash with Manchester City.

However, before the Gunners can get too ahead of themselves, they need to prepare for the opening game of their Champions League campaign against Atalanta tonight, and given the quick turnaround, changes to the lineup must be made, one of which should see Leandro Trossard replaced with one of the most exciting youngsters at the club.

Why Leandro Trossard should be dropped

So, there are two key reasons why Trossard should be dropped for tonight’s European tie, and you might even say they are contradictory.

The first is that while he wasn’t bad against Spurs on the weekend, he was underwhelming and remained rather quiet throughout the game despite moving between midfield and forward positions alongside Kai Havertz.

His match statistics reflect his mixed performance. In his 80 minutes on the pitch, he took just 30 touches, failed to have a shot on target, maintained a passing accuracy of just 75%, lost six of ten duels, lost the ball nine times, and was dribbled past once.

However, the Belgian also succeeded in 100% of his dribbles, had a shot blocked, played two key passes, created one big chance, won two fouls and made one interception and tackle.

So, while the former Brighton & Hove Albion ace wasn’t at his best, he still offered something, which explains his 6/10 match rating from the Standard’s Simon Collings and leads into the second reason he should be dropped to the bench tonight: fitness.

With Odegaard out of the team, Arteta does not have many players who can come in and play the attacking midfield role aside from Trossard. With the must-win game against City coming up on the weekend, the 29-year-old should be rested, even if he wasn’t spectacular against Spurs.

Overall, the combination of a middling performance in the North London Derby and the need to keep him fresh for Sunday’s game regardless means Arteta should drop Trossard.

Why Ethan Nwaneri should start

Yes, the player Arteta should turn to in place of Trossard this evening is talented youngster Ethan Nwaneri.

There were calls for the 17-year-old to start in the North London Derby last week, but even for an academy product as highly rated as he is, that might have been a step too far.

However, an away game against Atalanta within the context of Odegaard’s injury might be the perfect opportunity to hand him his first competitive start.

Now, that is not to say the Italian side are an easy opponent, they certainly aren’t, but the extreme pressure and hostile environment during an away derby match just won’t be there, and judging off his cameo against the Lilywhites, the Hale Ender, whom talent scout Jacek Kulig described as one of England and Arsenal’s “biggest jewels” looks like he’s been playing top-flight football for years.

In those ten minutes, he won his only duel, completed his only dribble, made one clearance, blocked a shot, took eight touches, and generally looked fearless in possession.

Moreover, his record for the youth sides is exemplary, as in 52 appearances across various junior teams, the “top talent”, as dubbed by Kulig, has scored 27 goals and provided ten assists, meaning he has averaged a goal involvement every 1.40 games primarily as an attacking midfielder.

Ultimately, Trossard should be rested to keep him fresh for City, even if he was underwhelming against Spurs, and in his place, Arteta should hand the incredibly exciting Nwaneri his first competitive start for Arsenal. It might be a lot of pressure for the 17-year-old, but as they say, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough.