Arsenal Ace Cannot be a Starter for Arteta Following ‘Poor’ Display vs Newcastle

Newcastle United knocked title-chasing Arsenal for six in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off. The match ended 1-0 in favour of Eddie Howe and Co thanks to a goal from Alexander Isak – but more of a cause of concern is that there is one Gunners ace subject to a large chunk of the criticism.

Under Mikel Arteta, the side from north London have emerged as Manchester City’s fiercest contenders for the Premier League title, pushing Pep Guardiola and his entourage to the wire in 2022/23 by five points and in 2023/24 by just two.

Stuck in a bit of a rut without Martin Odegaard, Arteta have tried all manner of methods to alleviate the loss of the Norwegian magician – including the use of Leandro Trossard in the No10 position and also in a front two.

But that tweak to the starting line-up hasn’t exactly gone to plan with Trossard failing to pull up trees when named as a starter by Arteta and his entourage – as evidenced by his ponderous display against Newcastle in their 1-0 loss.

Inside Trossard’s Torrid 71-Minute Stint vs Newcastle

Belgian, per Sofascore, picked up worst rating of Arsenal’s starter

Everything from his decision marking to his inability to make intelligent runs behind a stubborn Newcastle back line, much of what Trossard offered on the St James’ Park turf was not only lacking conviction but effort. His torrid stint on Tyneside came to a lamentable end in the 71st minute as he trudged towards the touchline in favour of Gabriel Jesus, who has also earned his fair share of flack for this season’s performances.

Widely regarded as one of the most two-footed players in football right now, the Belgian has often been Arsenal’s secret weapon off the bench. Though, when it comes to starting an outing from the off, he somewhat struggles to assert his dominance.

Online, Arsenal fans were not enthused by the 29-year-old’s troubled performance against the Magpies – one in which saw them drop three points with Liverpool and Manchester City playing Brighton & Hove Albion and Bournemouth, respectively. One supporter said:

Per Sofascore’s database, in his 71 minutes on the field, the Genk graduate let off just two shots on goal – neither of which, unfortunately, were on target, leaving Nick Pope’s goal largely untested. His movement when in possession of the ball was also rather wasteful away from home, with him completing 0/2 successful dribbles, while he also failed to complete a successful long ball, proving his inability to combine with his teammates.

In terms of his general passing, he enjoyed a pass rate of 77.3% (17/22) throughout his 71-minute cameo and lost possession on 12 different occasions with him often caught in two minds further afield. Overall, he racked up an overall rating of 6.4 by winning 2 of his 10 duels in what was a dismal display – one that prevents Arsenal from gluing in attack and providing an attacking threat to opposition teams.

Use of Trossard Hinders Nwaneri’s Development

The youngster is waiting patiently in the wings

Signed from Brighton & Hove Albion in the 2022/23 mid-season transfer window, Waterschei-born Trossard seemingly went under the radar amid the smorgasbord of talent that Mikel Arteta and his entourage have at their disposal, including the ever-reliable Bukayo Saka and the aforementioned Odegaard – a player close to returning to action, much to the delight of the Emirates Stadium faithful.

Not only that, but deploying an out-of-sorts Trossard further afield prevents the likes of Ethan Nwaneri, one of the club’s shining stars from a Hale End standpoint, from getting well-earned minutes for the senior side. With Nwaneri champing at the bit to take his place, he is evidently struggling to handle the ever-rising pressure in the north of the capital, especially in the absence of their creator-in-chief Odegaard.

Arsenal have been notoriously poor at allowing young stars the time to flourish while rubbing shoulders with the club’s senior assets – but what Arteta cannot afford to do is pick players based on names and not merit. London-born Nwaneri has been a constant threat in his limited minutes on the pitch this campaign and, in many people’s eyes, has earned a chance to feature more regularly under Arteta’s stewardship. Trossard, however, is stunting that growth.

Of course, what Trossard boasts over the the youngster is a wealth of experience – but getting rid of Emile Smith Rowe to Fulham and Fabio Vieira, who is on loan at Porto, and not trusting Nwaneri is a massive error on Arteta’s part, and it could be a deciding factor in this term’s race for the Premier League title.

All statistics per Transfermarkt – correct as of 02/11/24