Marco Silva and Mikel Arteta agree on Emile Smith Rowe verdict despite venting frustrations with ex-Arsenal star

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Arsenal host Fulham at the Emirates on Tuesday evening, in a game that marks Emile Smith Rowe’s first return to his former club.

The Gunners will be looking to tighten their grip on second place in the Premier League when they entertain the Cottagers, who come into the game off the back of a disappointing result in the FA Cup against Crystal Palace.

However, the North Londoners will already be thinking about the tie against Real Madrid in the Champions League next week, with their remaining league fixtures serving as an opportunity for Mikel Arteta to prepare for Europe’s elite competition.

For Smith Rowe, the match will be significant, returning to the club that helped him forge his career at the top level, developing and nurturing him for over 14 years.

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Marco Silva and Mikel Arteta agree on former Arsenal star Emile Smith Rowe

Arsenal sold Smith Rowe to Fulham for a fee that could rise to £34 million with add-ons in the summer, after the midfielder hardly featured for the Gunners in the last two seasons.

Impressing early on at Craven Cottage, the 24-year-old has faded in West London and has been in and out of Marco Silva’s starting line-up in recent weeks.

The Hale End graduate has started 22 Premier League games this campaign, scoring five goals and registering two assists in the process.

Asked about Smith Rowe in his press conference on Monday, Silva delivered a blunt verdict on the player.

“For a player with his quality, with his talent, of course we all expected consistent – we expected to see him have an impact every single game in a Fulham shirt,” Silva said.

“He has probably played more than 20-25 games already. We saw the impact in half of them, but for a player like him we expect, we want, and we are working with him to have much more impact in a consistent way.”

“It doesn’t surprise me because he’s a player who hasn’t played enough football in the last two seasons. He’s had ups and downs.”

Arteta gave Smith Rowe his breakthrough season at Arsenal, but was largely critical of the player’s ability to remain fit and consistently impact games in the ensuing years.

Asked about the former Gunner in his press conference, the Spaniard was full of praise, although he vented some of the same frustrations Silva expressed.

“Exceptional,” Arteta said.

“I mean he has all the attributes to become a top, top footballer and that consistency especially with us he wasn’t able, especially with the period where he had injuries. But tremendous quality.”

Emile Smith Rowe’s statistics for Fulham

Smith Rowe was told he had to become more effective in duels when he was at Arsenal, and it appears this lack of physical power and robustness hasn’t improved at Fulham.

Starting the campaign enjoying the free role Silva granted him playing off the striker, he’s slowly shrunk into his shell and struggled to impose himself on football matches.

Despite still retaining and recycling possession effectively, Smith Rowe isn’t providing Fulham with the value in the final third that the mid-table side would undoubtedly have expected from a £34 million signing.

Taking fewer than two shots per 90 minutes, the attacking midfielder is hardly a creative force, assisting less than a shot on average per game.

With the likes of Andreas Pereira, Willian and Alex Iwobi vying for a place in Fulham’s attacking quartet, Smith Rowe’s form will have to improve in the coming weeks if he’s to keep his place in Silva’s side.