Mikel Arteta reveals why Leandro Trossard was substituted despite only coming on at half-time

Add as preferred source on Google

Leandro Trossard only lasted 40 minutes after coming on as a substitute during Arsenal’s defeat to Aston Villa.

The Gunners went into the game at Villa Park with an 18-game unbeaten streak behind them, but they were nowhere near the level required.

Unai Emery’s men were better for large parts of the game, and although their winner came in the final seconds, they completely deserved the three points.

Arsenal fans are upset with the defeat, but they are more concerned about their goalscorer, Trossard, because he was taken off despite coming on as a substitute himself.

Is Leandro Trossard the best super sub Arsenal have ever had? If not, who is?

Leandro Trossard scores again off the bench!

Comment

Like or Comment

Have your say Sign-in now for free

Mikel Arteta explains why Leandro Trossard was substituted during Aston Villa vs Arsenal

Leandro Trossard has been one of Arsenal’s best players this season.

The Belgium international was a candidate to be sold in the summer transfer window, but Arteta blocked his exit because he knew how important he was.

That has proved to be the right decision as Trossard has been magnificent in recent weeks, and he made an impact after coming on at half-time against Villa on Saturday.

The former Brighton man looked lively on the left flank, caused Villa a few problems and also scored what was the equaliser at the time.

Then, in the 86th minute, when the game was still in the balance, Arteta took Trossard off and brought Gabriel Martinelli on.

After the game, the Arsenal manager was asked about an update on Trossard. He said, as per James Benge of CBS Sports on X: “Leo could only play a certain number of minutes. We made a decision to do it early… that’s why we had to change things.”

Speaking to BBC Sport, Arteta said: “We knew he is another player coming back from injury and he started to feel it again so we had to take him off.”

Arsenal conceded a last-minute goal after Trossard was taken off and lost the game.

Arsenal still have the same problem that they have had for years

Arsenal were shocking against Aston Villa in the first half, and their biggest problem was their left side.

Riccardo Calafiori went high up the pitch and inverted as he usually does, leaving a lot of space behind for Villa to exploit.

Eberechi Eze, who played on the left wing, wasn’t great – not just on the ball but also off it as he was at fault for Villa’s goal.

Arsenal’s left flank offered nothing at either end of the pitch until Trossard came on. That problem has existed for a few years now.

We just hope Trossard’s injury is not serious. If it is, teams will surely look to exploit that side of Arsenal’s pitch in the coming games.