Mikel Arteta was really pleased with Myles Lewis-Skelly’s performance against Wigan and his attitude to changing positions for Arsenal at such short notice.
Riccardo Calafiori was forced to pull out of the warm-up ahead of the Gunners’ FA Cup fourth-round tie, which meant Lewis-Skelly was forced to drop from midfield into defence.
Fill in the blank: Arsenal NOT loaning out Myles Lewis-Skelly in January was the ________ decision…
Arsenal fans were very excited by the prospect of watching the Hale End star in action in midfield and were gutted when he was forced to withdraw.
It will have been rather frustrating for the 19-year-old to have to change positions so late, but his manager has praised his attitude.
Mikel Arteta praises Myles Lewis-Skelly after Wigan win
Mikel Arteta has praised Myles Lewis-Skelly for having to switch from midfield to left-back at ‘very late’ notice for Arsenal.
The Spanish coach believes that it will be a good ‘learning moment’ for the defender, and in the end, he had a ‘really good game’.
Asked whether he was frustrated about having to move Lewis-Skelly out of midfield and into left-back, Arteta told HaytersTV: “No, that was another learning moment, and I always tell them, be ready.
“In the role that you have, you can change any minute, and Bukayo had to be ready; he was made aware of that very, very, very late.
“But you need to understand the position, you need to understand the global intentions of the team and if you do that, then you can perform, and I think he might have had a really good game.”
KEEP, BENCH and SELL: Riccardo Calafiori, Piero Hincapie and Myles Lewis Skelly
Rank Arsenal's three left-back options…
Myles-Lewis could be used in midfield given Arsenal’s injuries; however, Bukayo Saka stepped up in the number ten role.
Arteta has now suggested Saka could play in midfield more often, which will only further limit Lewis-Skelly’s chances of playing there.
Right now, the teenager will be looking at his situation and will be rather frustrated that he did not leave the Emirates Stadium on loan.
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s lack of minutes at Arsenal is a worry
Lewis-Skelly is not getting much game time right now, having been benched in three of the last four Arsenal matches.
In the Premier League, Lewis-Skelly has made just one start, and that is unlikely to improve as the stakes continue to rise.
Meanwhile, his chances in cup competitions are likely to decrease, with the games becoming more important.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
