Reporter Charles Watts has labelled Eddie Nketiah’s midweek performance as a ‘nightmare’ for Arsenal.
The Lowdown: Arsenal starting to buckle
Arsenal tasted defeat for the first time at home in the Premier League this season when the champions of England put a marker down for the rest of the league, winning 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
Despite the defeat, the Gunners still have their fate in their own hands as they sit behind Manchester City on goal difference with a game in hand.
While Mikel Arteta may not be too downbeat losing to a team that has cost millions of pounds to assemble, what he will be annoyed about is individual errors that cost his team from players such as Takehiro Tomiyasu for Kevin De Bruyne’s opener and also the number of chances missed by Nketiah.
The Latest: Nketiah fails to deliver
Given the injury to Gabriel Jesus, Nketiah has had to lead the line for a long time now, but last night was seemingly a game too far as he squandered two golden opportunities to help the Gunners salvage anything from the game, as Watts highlighted while speaking on his YouTube channel.
He said: “Eddie Nketiah had a bit of a nightmare. He had big, big chances; the one in the first half at 0-0, what a crucial moment that was.
“Brilliant ball in from Zinchenko, you just have to score there if you’re a striker in that position at the very top level against Man City. You’re not going to get better chances than that, and the fact he didn’t even hit the target was just so poor from Nketiah.”
The Verdict: Arteta needs Gabriel Jesus back
In the immediate aftermath of Jesus’ devastating injury that he sustained at the World Cup, Nketiah appeared to be a reliable deputy and has done well thus far to ensure the Gunners sustained a serious title challenge to this point.
However, Nketiah has now failed to score in five of his last six games, which has coincided with the Gunners also failing to win any of their three previous matches, having also dropped points against Everton and Brentford.
So while Nketiah has done his job up until now for Arsenal, he’s clearly not on the same level as serial winner Jesus, so if he can get back to full fitness before the end of the month, it could be season-defining for the Gunners and Arteta.