Ally McCoist says £34m Arsenal player kept getting in Eberechi Eze’s way against Athletic Club

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Ally McCoist felt one Arsenal player prevented Eberechi Eze from showcasing his talents against Athletic Club on Tuesday evening.

Mikel Arteta’s team won at San Mames in the Champions League, despite struggling for large periods of the game.

Late goals from substitutes Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli saw off the Basque side, who were resolute and compact, particularly during the opening 45 minutes.

Eze was deployed on the left-hand side of the Gunners’ attack and struggled to impact the game, finding it difficult to get involved frequently.

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Ally McCoist says Riccardo Calafiori kept getting in Eberechi Eze’s way vs Athletic Club

Arsenal signed Eze for £67.5 million from Crystal Palace this summer.

The attacking midfielder arrives with big expectations, but it’s safe to say the Gunners did not get the best out of him in their opening Champions League fixture of the campaign.

Starting on the left, Eze hardly had the ball in the first half, while Arsenal funnelled almost every attack they had in the second period down the right.

While the England international needs to do more to not be on the periphery, he wasn’t helped by Arteta’s team’s unwillingness to play down the left at any point.

Speaking on the TNT Sport broadcast, McCoist identified Riccardo Calafiori’s positioning as one of the key reasons behind Eze’s muted display.

“He’s on the left side there for Arsenal. Eze hasn’t been in this game. And he wasn’t much of a factor at the weekend against Forest either,” commentator Darren Fletcher said.

“No, I don’t think you’re wrong there, and I know what you’re hinting at there, perhaps there should be a wee change here,” McCoist responded.

“Well, it’s amazing, the position that Calafiori takes up.

“My point is that the position Calafiori takes up, when he moves into that left side, that’s where Eze should be, I think, he’s more suited to picking the ball up there on the half turn.”

Eberechi Eze should be deployed further inside

At Palace, Eze was used as a left-sided number ten by Oliver Glasner.

The 27-year-old was essentially deployed in the left half-spaces, with a marauding left-wing-back in Tyrick Mitchell outside of him.

This allowed him to operate in the central pockets, combine in small spaces with those around him and take shots from the edge of the box.

Against Athletic Club, Eze was stuck on the touchline and wasn’t able to get into areas where he could hurt the opposition.

Arteta must change this moving forward to get the best out of his new signing, with an overlapping full-back needed for him to be used in a role which he’s more suited to.