Arsenal star labelled ‘phenomenal’ by Mikel Arteta as transfer message sent

Mikel Arteta is looking to strengthen his squad this month, with Arsenal currently missing several key players through injury including Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus

Mikel Arteta has branded Arsenal youngster Myles Lewis-Skelly “phenomenal” after he starred in the North London derby, but the Gunners boss admitted they need to bring in reinforcements.

Arsenal beat Tottenham 2-1 on Wednesday after an own goal from Dominic Solanke and a Leandro Trossard strike cancelled out Son Heung-min’s opener. And Arteta was particularly impressed by Lewis-Skelly’s performance, with the 18-year-old starting at left-back.

“He was phenomenal today,” Arteta told TNT Sports after the game. “He is a real personality. He has so much trust in himself. He has that attitude about him. He had to play against [Brennan] Johnson and [Dejan] Kulusevski here, and manage the occasion, it is not easy. He was top.”

However, Arsenal are looking to make some new signings this month, with Gabriel Jesus suffering a serious ACL injury that could rule him out for the rest of the season. Jesus joins the likes of Bukayo Saka, Ethan Nwaneri and Ben White on the sidelines.

And when asked if they were looking to strengthen their squad this month, Arteta replied: “Yes, for sure because we lost two big players – Bukayo who could be out for up to three months and then Gabby who will be out for a long, long, long time.

“We are going to try [in this window] for sure. We are actively looking. We will try. Let’s see what we can get. We cannot feel sorry for ourselves. What we can control is the performances and we have been doing that consistently.

“The results are unfortunate sometimes and you don’t always get what you deserve. However, long to medium term, I am sure we will do.”

Arsenal star Declan Rice also admitted he would not be “surprised” if the Gunners sign a new forward, with the England international highlighting just how short of options the injuries to Jesus, Saka and Nwaneri have left them.

“We have lost Gabby, he’s probably going to be out for a year with an ACL,” Rice told TNT Sports. “It’s really tough. I’m sure [the] manager will look for something because we had to bring [Kieran] Tierney on [the] left wing. We are a bit short there. I’d not be surprised if we do something [in the transfer window].”

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