Mikel Arteta says what he has to do with Ethan Nwaneri after Arsenal display vs Leicester

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Ethan Nwaneri produced an impressive performance for Arsenal against Leicester City on Saturday afternoon.

Mikel Arteta opted to deploy the teenager on the right-wing against the Foxes, alongside Raheem Sterling and Leandro Trossard in a makeshift Arsenal forward-line.

While Sterling delivered a dire performance, Nwaneri shone for the Gunners, providing Mikel Merino with an outstanding assist for the opening goal and hitting the woodwork twice with two ferocious efforts.

The 17-year-old’s outing has likely secured his spot in the starting eleven for several weeks to come with Bukayo Saka out, and Arteta was certainly complimentary of the starlet after the game.

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Mikel Arteta heaps praise on Ethan Nwaneri for Leicester performance

With Arsenal looking lackluster at the King Power Stadium, Nwaneri was the man who was looking to make something happen.

The Hale End graduate ran the show, almost scoring twice and creating the opening goal that won the Gunners the game.

Speaking to the media after Arsenal’s win over Leicester, Arteta waxed lyrical about Nwaneri’s performance and expressed how he has to let the player express himself to maximise his potential.

“Well, what he’s [Nwaneri] showing [his talent] basically, that’s him,” the Arsenal boss said.

“Obviously, his age is always something that puts a question mark on how we have to deal with him.

“But every sign that he’s given us is ‘Let me go for it, let me go, let me go, let me go.’

“When a player is giving you all those signs, you should not stop it. You have to play with that freedom, with that creativity, with that confidence that he’s playing at the minute, and the players around him believe in him.

“So let him go because he’s a massive threat, massive talent and he deserves to play.

“You could see that he had another level of threat than the rest of the team and he continued with that in the second half with two great actions and after that he put the ball on the plate for Mikel [Merino] to score the header.”

Joe Cole jumped on the Nwaneri hype train prior to the game, claiming that the prospect is ‘the brightest young player in the country’.

With performances like this, it’s hard to argue against this bold claim from the former Chelsea player.

Mikel Arteta was coy on Raheem Sterling’s performance v Leicester

While Nwaneri impressed, Sterling certainly didn’t.

The Chelsea loanee was hooked for Merino with 22 minutes to play, after managing just one shot, no key passes and no successful dribbles.

Asked about Sterling’s display in his post-match press conference, Arteta swiftly brushed past the topic and addressed the entire team’s showing in the first half.

He said: “Yeah [Sterling did struggle], and as well, I think from everybody, to step up the game because in the first half, as I said, especially in the first 20-25 minutes, we weren’t at our standards, and when that happens it’s very difficult for the front players.”

Evidently trying to not batter Sterling’s confidence even further, Arteta’s words do indicate that he was frustrated with what the 30-year-old was able to produce.