Arteta told to make one change to help Nketiah reach ‘Ian Wright-like’ levels at Arsenal 

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Former Republic of Ireland striker Tony Cascarino believes Mikel Arteta needs to do one thing to take Eddie Nketiah to the next level.

Arsenal forward Eddie Nketiah produced a spectacular performance against Sheffield United last time out. The 24-year-old scored his first ever Premier League hat trick against the Blades, with three brilliantly taken goals at the Emirates Stadium.

With Gabriel Jesus currently sidelined with injury, Nketiah can expect plenty of game time in the coming weeks. As such, the Gunners’ fanbase and Mikel Arteta will all be hoping that the once-capped England man can take a huge boost from this display and put together an excellent run of form.

Nketiah has shown on numerous previous occasions that he can be a real goal threat at Premier League level. However, consistency has been a struggle for him so far in his career.

His potential is obvious, though, and Tony Cascarino is convinced that Arteta can do more to help coax the best out of the Hale End academy graduate on a more regular basis.

Should Mikel Arteta give Eddie Nketiah a strike partner?

Speaking on talkSPORT, Cascarino said, “I keep looking at Nketiah and thinking: how good would you be with a partner? If you had someone alongside him, because he’s very Ian Wright-like…Ian always had a partner, Eddie doesn’t have that…I just think it’s a tough gig to expect him to get lots and lots of goals.”

It is probably a bit of a stretch to compare Nketiah to Ian Wright so directly. The latter is on of the greatest goalscorers to ever represent the club. However, in terms of style of play, there are similarities between the pair.

It would be fascinating to see Nketiah operate alongside a true strike partner. Playing Kai Havertz up front with him, whose aerial prowess would make for an old-school pairing, could yield some positive results for Arsenal.

However, Arteta seems wedded to his current formation and tactical approach. It is up to Nketiah to find a way to consistently thrive within this system. The manager clearly has faith that he can do so, as he regularly picks him.