Arteta will lose the title if Arsenal flop isn’t dropped

Arsenal bounced back from their defeat against Aston Villa last week with a hugely important win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday night.

However, despite the visitors sitting at the bottom of the Premier League, on just two points, it was anything but a straightforward win.

In fact, were it not for a late own goal, forced by a Bukayo Saka cross, the Gunners would have come away from the encounter with just a point and be sitting behind Manchester City as things stand.

There were poor performances across the pitch, and if Mikel Arteta continues to start a particular player, alongside Viktor Gyokeres, Arsenal will end the season in second place for the fourth year running.

Arsenal’s poor performers

Since joining the club in the summer, Martin Zubimendi has been practically faultless and an instrumental cog in Arteta’s usually dominant machine.

However, against Wolves on Saturday night, the Spaniard looked way off the pace and struggled to influence the game in any meaningful way, be that offensively or defensively.

For example, he failed to play a single key pass, lost the ball ten times, played one long ball and lost 100% of his ground duels, so it was hardly a surprise to see him replaced by Mikel Merino early into the second 45.

Staying in midfield, it was also a night to forget for Eberechi Eze.

Was the Englishman the worst player on the pitch? No, but he failed to create anything of much substance throughout his 57 minutes of inaction and was rightfully replaced by Martin Odegaard.

For example, during his time on the pitch, the former Crystal Palace star registered an expected assists figure of just 0.03, failed to play a key pass or complete a cross, didn’t take a single shot and failed in 50% of his dribbles.

Finally, the starter who is perhaps getting the most criticism of all, and unfortunately justifiably so, is Gyokeres.

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Arsenal fans are desperate for the Swedish striker to come good this season, and while there is still time for him to do so, Saturday night’s performance was another seriously worrying one.

The former Sporting CP star was anonymous for practically the entire game, and even when he had a couple of half-chances, he made a meal of them.

By the time Gabriel Jesus replaced him in the 81st minute, the 27-year-old had taken just 15 touches, registered an expected goals figure of just 0.04, failed to take a shot on target, lost the ball eight times and was fully deserving of the 4/10 match rating he received from the Sun’s Kostas Lianos.

In all, if Gyokeres keeps playing like this and Arteta keeps picking him, it feels like Arsenal will finish second again this season, which could be said for another starter from Saturday.

The Arsenal star Arteta must not start again

Some of Arteta’s personnel decisions have been heavily influenced by who is and isn’t fit this season, but even so, if he wants to ensure Arsenal finish top of the pile, he must stop starting Gabriel Martinelli, at least in the Premier League.

Now, before the pitchforks and torches come out, this isn’t to say that the Brazilian international cannot play a part in the North Londoners’ campaign; of course, he can.

However, what has become increasingly apparent is that when he starts games, the former Ituano gem is less effective than when he comes off the bench.

Saturday night was the perfect example of this, as while Gyokeres was somehow even more ineffective, the 24-year-old wasn’t much better.

For example, in his 57 minutes of relative inaction, he registered an expected goals figure of 0.34 but failed to score and missed a big chance; he also was unable to register a shot on target, took just 33 touches, didn’t play a key pass, lost the ball 11 times and completed just 12 of 18 passes.

In short, it was a painfully ineffective performance from the rapid winger, in stark contrast to Saka on the right-hand side, who forced both of Wolves’ own goals.

Now, while it’s clear that the sometimes “clunky and indecisive” winger, as dubbed by podcaster Phil Costa, should no longer start games, he can still be an incredibly useful option off the bench.

In fact, this season has shown as much, as three of his six goals and his one assist have all come in games in which he’s come off the bench and exploited a tired opposition.

Ultimately, if the first quarter of this season, and Saturday night in particular, has proven anything to Arteta, it’s that neither Gyokeres nor Martinelli can be starters if Arsenal want to win the Premier League this year.

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