Arsenal may be on the lookout for reinforcements in their forward line but that has not stopped Eddie Nketiah from coming to the fore as an option for Mikel Arteta. The striker has started the last two friendly games for the Gunners and his performances have not only contributed to the two victories but looking deeper into his game reveals that things are changing.
There is a lack of confidence amongst a portion of the Arsenal supporter base that Nketiah can be enough for the Gunners to maintain their title charge in Gabriel Jesus’ absence through injury. Calls for a striker signing this winter are even perhaps bearing some fruit as rumours the club may look to add another forward to their wanted list in January are gaining pace.
Nketiah himself believes he is ready for this. Speaking after the game against Lyon in which he scored, the 23-year-old detailed his determination to help the team toward their goals.
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"Of course, it is an opportunity for myself," he said. "These things happen in football, unfortunately, so you've just got to be ready for the moment when it comes. I have been working hard. I've been working hard all season and I'm sure when I get the opportunity, I'll be able to come in and help the team."
Fans will remember Nketiah being brought in to start last season by Mikel Arteta. With Alexandre Lacazette unable to bring the necessary goals required, the Arsenal manager took the decision to bring Nketiah in and was rewarded with his return.
Nketiah scored five goals in the eight consecutive starts and showed what he was capable of providing if given the trust of playing regularly. A new deal was signed in the summer with a bump in wages and the number 14 shirt that was offloaded after the exit of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
However, the arrival of Gabriel Jesus effectively nullified what Nketiah had done. The Brazilian was a big investment by the club and even despite going on a ten-game-plus goalscoring drought Arteta valued his contribution to the team and for good reason.
Jesus provided a boost to both the team’s efficiency and mentality. On the field, his presence raised the game of those around him by demanding more but also servicing them with passes.
Although he hadn’t scored since the North London Derby, Jesus chipped in with three assists in the period, although, he was guilty of missing a significant number of opportunities.
Now out, Nketiah comes into the team with the chance of regular football again but based on the two mid-season friendly fixtures he wants to show more. Below shows the average passing position of Nketiah in the two friendlies compared to last season’s win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
It was evident this December that Nketiah was no longer just playing off the last defender and trying to get on the end of chances. Like Jesus, Nketiah has begun to drop in, work the spaces and link-up play with those around him.
One of the big pieces of evidence of this is seeing him receive more passes from the Arsenal defenders. His passing combinations with Kieran Tierney (12) were the seventh-highest on the team.
Tierney and Reiss Nelson (19) were the highest. For further context, Gabriel Jesus didn’t feature in the top ten passing combo frequencies in his last game against Wolves.
Looking at Gabriel Jesus’ heat map from this Premier League season shows just how much of the field he covers in a game. Nketiah in just two games showed progression; against Lyon, he skewed towards the left and was absent on the right but just days later had recognised this and the map clearly shows a greater balance across the front.
Nketiah also had a key pass in each of the games. Although Nelson, who was on the receiving end of both, failed to take the opportunities you can bet Gabriel Martinelli was watching with anticipation and perhaps some reassurance that Nketiah coming in will not necessarily lower the opportunities provided by his partnering striker.
The first example against Lyon comes from Nketiah drifting to the left and receiving one of those aforementioned passes from Tierney. Spinning and running onto the ball, Nketiah spotted his teammate in space, cut the ball back and Nelson was unfortunate to see his strike hit the post.
Against AC Milan, Nketiah showed his ability with a different type of creation, more centrally this time, but showing his starting position much deeper in the field similar to that of Jesus. When Thomas Partey recovers possession, Nketiah immediately accelerates away and the Ghanaian spots the run and feeds his forward.
Nketiah, with the ball, drives forward but allows Nelson to keep pace. Drawing the Milan left-back, it allowed space for Nelson to run into and the striker fed his winger with a perfect ball but his fellow Arsenal academy graduate fired over.
Two key passes in two games added to his goal against Lyon and the free-kick he won which was scored by Martin Odegaard against Milan demonstrated two good performances from him. But the evidence discussed certainly emphasises the application being made not only to improve his individual output but how it meshes with the starting XI aligned with Mikel Arteta’s expectations from his team.
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