Nketiah told how to fix Arsenal ‘problem’ as Arteta dealt Jesus dilemma

Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah has been selected by Mikel Arteta as Gabriel Jesus recovers from injury and has been given advice on how to improve for the Gunners

Eddie Nketiah has been given instructions on how to succeed as the focal point of Arsenal's attack.

The 24-year-old has been entrusted to deputise in Gabriel Jesus’ absence as the Brazilian striker recovers from a knee injury. Nketiah began the new season in promising fashion, getting on the scoresheet against Nottingham Forest after collecting a sensational pass from Gabriel Marinelli, cutting inside and firing the ball beyond former teammate Matt Turner.

It was a confident start for the forward, who had a couple of opportunities to make it two from two in the win over Crystal Palace. Nketiah’s first chance saw him look to steer the ball into the far corner but agonisingly struck the post. Before half-time, the Arsenal striker was then fed through by Declan Rice but his decision to chip Sam Johnstone saw the ball sail over the crossbar.

Nketiah proved to be pivotal to the Gunners’ victory at Selhurst Park as he was brought down by Johnstone for the penalty that led to Martin Odegaard’s winner and was adept at getting in-behind Palace’s backline throughout the game. However, as NBC Sports analysed Nketiah’s display at half-time, pundit Danny Higginbotham pointed to a potential issue that could lead Nketiah to, inadvertently, hamper Arsenal’s attack.

“I think Nketiah is key to it. There’s a few clips that we’ve got from the first half where he’s sort of stretching the game. That’s what you want from him,” Higginbotham explained. “At times when he’s dropping deep it becomes a little bit of a problem.

"He’s looking on the last defender, looking on the last defender, gets in really well here. Hits the post and he has another opportunity where he does exactly the same thing. He’s looking around, ‘can I play on the shoulder of the last defender.’ He does exactly that. That enables him to find space and he’ll be disappointed he wasn’t able to find the back of the net.

“But you need to see more of that, in my opinion, from Nketiah. Because the problem is if you’re Nketiah and you’re dropping deep, all of a sudden you’re taking the space of [Havertz and Odegaard].”

With no official return date set for Gabriel Jesus, Nketiah will likely be handed another starting role against Fulham on Saturday. The 24-year-old will be eager to prove his worth as Arsenal’s main man in attack and present Mikel Arteta with a possible selection headache, once Jesus is back in contention.