Mikel Arteta says £50m star was Arsenal’s ‘best player’ in pre-season, but he’s barely played since

Add as preferred source on Google

Injuries have continued to trouble Arsenal this season.

The Gunners had multiple injury issues in the 2024/25 campaign, and that was the biggest reason why they failed to win the Premier League and the Champions League.

Mikel Arteta hoped for better luck this term, but a number of his key players have spent spells on the sidelines.

One of them is Ben White, which is a shame as Arteta felt he had an incredible pre-season.

Mikel Arteta says Ben White was Arsenal’s best player in pre-season

Arsenal signed White for £50 million from Brighton and Hove Albion in the summer of 2021.

The Englishman was brought in as a centre-half at the time, but he was moved to right-back to accommodate William Saliba in the heart of the defence.

In his first two seasons in that role, the versatile defender was absolutely fantastic and was, in many people’s eyes, the best right-back in the country.

However, White played through injury on several occasions in that period, and that took a toll on his body, so much so that he has struggled with issues since the start of last season.

Arteta was given some hope about White’s fitness in pre-season, but the Spaniard has now revealed that he had a setback.

He said, as per Arsenal.com: “Yeah, he had a setback and that hasn’t helped, but I think in pre-season he was probably our best player. I think he played every game, and he was in great form.

“And we need him, because when Ben is at the level that he can show, he’s a top player for us, a player that drives the team in a different way, gives us a different threat on that flank as well, and we need him at his best.”

Due to the setback, White has been limited to just four appearances in all competitions this season, which is a real shame.

Arteta says White never tells him that he’s injured

Many of White’s teammates have described him as a ‘warrior’ because of his ability to play through injuries.

Rob Holding once claimed that the former Brighton man played through a severe hamstring injury and still looked very good.

Arteta has now added to the claim by saying White never discloses his injuries because he wants to be involved in every fixture.

“Ben, I mean, he will play with anything,” the Arsenal manager said.

“You really have to scratch and ask him: ‘Are you ok, are you ok?’ Because if not, he won’t tell you because he wants to play every game, which is great.”