Eberechi Eze sent warning as Mikel Arteta makes feelings clear and Arsenal role questioned

Eberechi Eze’s start at Arsenal hit a bump in the road on Tuesday night in Bilbao, with his position on the left wing of Mikel Arteta’s side questioned ahead of Manchester City test

Eberechi Eze’s arrival at Arsenal from Crystal Palace was met with universal excitement from the club’s fanbase – and not just because the Gunners had gazumped Tottenham to land him.

Eze has been one of the most exciting players in the Premier League for the past few seasons, putting together an impressive highlights reel at Palace with his skillset and joyful playing style almost unique. Given the keys to the Palace side, he drifted all over the pitch causing headaches for opponents.

His rise has seen him become an England regular and earned him a £67.5million transfer to Arsenal. There are few doubts that he has the potential to make the step up and there have been flashes of what Arsenal paid for, with an assist for fellow new arrival Viktor Gyokeres coming in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on the weekend.

But his Champions League debut on Tuesday night against Athletic Club saw reality bite for the 27-year-old. Arsenal picked up a 2-0 win in the Basque Country, but it had nothing to do with Eze, who was isolated and ineffectual on the left wing.

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Victory was provided by Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard, who came off the bench to combine for both goals. Mikel Arteta hailed his “finishers” afterwards in a message that could raise alarm bells for Eze: at Palace he was the undisputed top dog, but he faces much fiercer competition for places now. “Unbelievable, both him (Martinelli) and Leo. They have very different qualities to Ebs and Viktor,” Arteta said.

Eze generally played as a free No.10 at Palace, given licence to roam and create where he saw fit. But the structure is much more rigid at Arsenal under Arteta, especially on a Champions League away day. While fellow new arrival Noni Madueke continued to shine on the opposite wing, Eze had little impact.

Steve McManaman gave a blunt review of his performance on TNT Sports: “Eze will watch tonight’s performance and think to himself ‘this is a different class of opposition, they’re quicker, they’re stronger than I faced in the Premier League and with Crystal Palace ’.

“He knows now his level of game will have to jump up. You are now playing big boy’s football in the Champions League against the best teams around. If you want to compete, you have to be better and you have to be quicker than he showed tonight.”

But Eze might have another thought spinning around his mind: I wish Arteta would play me in my natural position.

Eze is right-footed and naturally drifts inside from the left flank and with Riccardo Calafiori behind him at left-back, there is no option on the overlap for Arsenal, who continually switched play for Madueke on the right instead.

Arteta favours a 4-3-3 formation which isn’t the best fit for Eze, who may have been eyeing up Mikel Merino’s role with some jealousy. With Martin Odegaard missing, it was Merino who was given the captain’s advanced midfield position, not Eze, but former Arsenal defender Martin Keown thinks that should change for Sunday.

Asked for his starting XI to face Manchester City, Keown said: “There is the possibility that Eze could play as a midfield player… I’d start with Martinelli on the left and put Eze in midfield. I take out Merino because Eze is a player I want in the midfield.

“He (Arteta) has options now when he didn’t last season during the run-in. He was managing with one arm tied behind his back because he didn’t have the options. Now he’s got to find the right balance to beat Man City.”

It seems unlikely that Arteta would make such a big tactical decision for a potentially season-defining match. He fielded the combative and safer midfield trio of Merino, Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi at Anfield on August 31 and isn’t a gambler.

In all likelihood, Eze will have to learn to adapt and thrive on the left flank. But he could very well find himself on the bench, with his role changed to one of Arteta’s “finishers”, in the near future with the returns of Odegaard and Bukayo Saka from injury making competition for places even stronger.

It is a good problem to have for Arteta and a challenge Eze will no doubt relish.

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