Martin Keown has told Mikel Arteta to use Ethan Nwaneri at right wing as Arsenal superstar Bukayo Saka looks to get back to full fitness.
Saka went off injured during the 5-1 thrashing of Crystal Palace on Saturday and was pictured leaving Selhurst Park on crutches afterwards. When asked about the forward’s hamstring problem, Arteta said: “It’s not looking good. He’s going to be out for many weeks.
“It is what it is. He’s injured, we cannot change it. We’re going to use this time now to help him.”
Arteta admitted that Saka had likely ‘torn’ something in his hamstring and that the England ace is ‘really emotional’ after discovering how long he will out of action for.
Arsenal chiefs have long been on the hunt for a new right winger who can provide cover and competition for Saka.
Much to the frustration of the club’s fans, the Gunners have never brought a backup in. Leandro Trossard and Raheem Sterling have both joined, but they prefer to operate on the left flank.
Luckily for Arteta, 17-year-old academy graduate Nwaneri is capable of playing as either a right winger or central attacking midfielder.
In an interview with talkSPORT, Arsenal hero Keown urged Arteta to rely on Nwaneri while Saka recovers.
“I don’t know of a player that has created more chances for his colleagues in the Premier League this season, so he [Saka] is obviously going to be a really big miss,” the former defender said.
“It’s up to someone to step up, maybe Nwaneri, who has been playing in the [Martin] Odegaard role, maybe he could come in to the front line and give us something different.
“Jesus has suddenly scored five goals in a week, that’s been a long time coming, so he needs to sustain that.
“But it’s in that final third where there needed to be more creativity and it could be less now as you’re losing one of the best players in the Premier League.”
Nwaneri became the youngest Prem player of all time when he made his debut in the competition in September 2022, aged just 15 years and 181 days.
The teenager’s influence on Arsenal has been slowly growing this term. So far he has registered four goals in 16 appearances, with 10 of those outings coming in the league.
Nwaneri has mainly had to rely on substitute appearances for game time, but Saka’s injury could give him the chance to stake a claim for a starting role.
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Meanwhile, Arsenal have been tipped to swoop for Barcelona defender Jules Kounde.
Reports in Spain suggest that Arsenal are preparing to bid €75m (£62m) for Kounde in January.
The Frenchman is a vital player for Hansi Flick, having featured in every game this season, though Barca chiefs are supposedly fielding offers for him.
While Kounde might arrive at the Emirates in 2025, Arsenal have distanced themselves from Viktor Gyokeres.
The Gunners have cooled their interest in Gyokeres and have instead sent scouts to watch Atalanta striker Mateo Retegui.
Manchester United will be delighted about the news as they are hoping to reunite Ruben Amorim with the Sporting CP ace.
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