Ethan Nwaneri’s future at Arsenal is becoming a hot topic of discussion.
The teenager is one of the best young players in the world, and he produced some excellent performances in his breakthrough campaign last season.
Arsenal fans are convinced that Nwaneri is going to be a superstar one day, but there is a chance that he may fulfil his potential elsewhere.
That is extremely worrying, but Dean Saunders is not happy with what the 18-year-old has reportedly done at Arsenal now.
Ethan Nwaneri gets criticised after his latest Arsenal demand
Arsenal are struggling to tie Ethan Nwaneri down to a new contract.
The youngster has entered the final year of his deal at the Emirates, and Arsenal would love nothing more than to extend it.
However, as TBR Football exclusively revealed in May, talks between Arsenal and Nwaneri have not been going smoothly.
That information has been relayed by other outlets recently, and there have now been claims that Nwaneri is seeking assurances over game time from Arsenal before he thinks about signing a new contract.
TalkSPORT pundit Saunders, who has played and managed before, is not happy with Nwaneri’s demands.
When Jeff Stelling said that Nwaneri showing ambition is good, Saunders replied: “Not when you are 18. Who do you think you are? You’re 18! You’ve done nothing. You’re learning the game.
“Listen to what Saka says to you. You learn more from your peers than you do from any manager. It’s the players you are playing with every day, they are the people you try and impress — ‘Can I live in this company? Can I play in this company? Because my teammates are going to turn on me if I keep giving the ball away and not producing.’
“He has to just learn, he’s got loads to learn.”
Ethan Nwaneri cannot complain about his game time
Nwaneri didn’t play a lot in the final few games of last season, and that must have been really frustrating for him as well as for Arsenal fans.
However, the teenager simply cannot complain because Mikel Arteta gave him opportunities in 37 different games last term.
That is a lot for someone who only turned 18 in March.
To put things into perspective, Bukayo Saka had played just one game in the Premier League before he turned 18. Nwaneri, on the other hand, was involved in 21.
We’re with Saunders here — Nwaneri hasn’t done anything yet to be demanding more game time. He has a lot to learn, and he should trust Arteta with his future at Arsenal.