Arsenal star Eberechi Eze appeared to have a tough afternoon against Fulham but Mikel Arteta reckons it wouldn't have taken much for his performance to be analysed in a different fashion
Eberechi Eze
Eberechi Eze has impressed Mikel Arteta(Image: Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images)
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Mikel Arteta believes Eberechi Eze's performance against Fulham would have been viewed differently had Viktor Gyokeres capitalised on his goalscoring opportunities. The former Crystal Palace star endured some difficult moments during the win over Cottagers as he often found space crowded.
Nevertheless, Arteta has been impressed with Eze's contribution at Arsenal so far, despite the midfielder failing to find the net outside of the Carabao Cup since his summer move. The 27-year-old's only contributions so far are his two assists.
Eze joined the Gunners in a deal worth up to £67.5million in August as Arsenal looked to bolster their attacking options. Eze started in Arsenal's midfield three against Fulham with Martin Odegaard out injured.
Leandro Trossard's lone strike separated the sides after 58 minutes, with Arteta's side allowing few opportunities against them. Eze was replaced minutes later after a difficult afternoon.
But Arteta believes his summer arrival still offered plenty, praising his versatility and suggesting the perception may have been different had Gyokeres been able to convert the chances put in front of him.
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Asked about Eze’s display against Fulham, Arteta said: "He’s more used to attacking open spaces and breaks and facing and carrying the ball with space in front of him, he’s so good and comfortable doing that.
"He had his moments today, he put Viktor once or twice through in really good spaces and that maybe if it finished in a goal it would’ve looked a bit different. But I’m very happy with what he’s doing and we can use him in different positions. Today we used him in that one and we can carry on trying to improve."
Arteta also had kind words for Arsenal's match-winner Trossard. The Belgian scored from close range as Arsenal showed their set-piece prowess once again.
Arsenal players celebrate after scoring against Fulham
Arsenal players celebrate after scoring against Fulham
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The Spanish coach highlighted Trossard's intuition. "He has this quality to create these magic moments when the team needs it the most and that intuition and he’s in the right place in the right moment and that’s a huge quality for the team and a massive weapon for us," Arteta said.
"So, I’m really happy. I think he’s been very, very good in recent weeks and now we have a lot of players in a really high emotional state and performance level, which is really good to see."
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