Ethan Nwaneri joined French side Marseille on loan until the end of the season albeit he now faces a slightly different end to the season following the exit of manager Roberto De Zerbi
Ethan Nwaneri
Ethan Nwaneri is in the middle of his loan spell at Marseille(Image: Getty Images)
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Mikel Arteta insists it was the right decision to send Ethan Nwaneri to Marseille despite Arsenal’s injury crisis and Roberto De Zerbi’s sacking. The youngster completed a loan move to the French side over the final few days of the January transfer window.
And he enjoyed a bright start to life in Ligue 1, scoring on his debut. A huge reason behind Nwaneri’s move to Marseille was to play under De Zerbi only for the Italian to leave the club this week.
Arsenal could also do with the youngster after injuries sustained by Mikel Merino and Kai Havertz. Despite that, Arteta still believes that the decision to allow the teenager to leave on loan was the correct one.
He said: “After making the decision, who could have predicted that Mikel was going to be out for five months and Kai?
“It’s unfortunate, in the end we have to make the decisions in the moment, understanding the context there.
“The best decision for the club, for Ethan, was for him to go and experience a different environment, have minutes played, and get ready to come back to us.”
Asked what impact De Zerbi’s exit from the Stade Velodrome could have, Arteta added: “I cannot control that, again it’s a decision, and that’s part of playing on loan, and that’s part of a journey of a football player.
“So you’re going to have to work with different coaches, and that can happen any moment, you cannot control that, you cannot avoid that.
Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta has offered his take on Ethan Nwaneri's prospects at Marseille(Image: Getty Images)
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“For sure one of the reasons [Nwaneri was sent to Marseille] was Roberto, but as well it was Marseille, and what Marseille as a club and as an environment brings to Ethan, and I think that’s going to be still very positive.”
Nwaneri will be aiming to help Marseille continue their push for a Champions League spot at the weekend. They take on Strasbourg at home on Saturday afternoon.
Meanwhile, Arsenal will take a break from their push for the Premier League crown this weekend as they clash with Wigan Athletic in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Nwaneri has made 51 senior appearances for Arsenal in all since his breakthrough in the 2023/24 campaign. In the time since, he has scored on ten occasions for the North London side.
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