3 days ago
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MIKEL ARTETA has given a worrying injury update on Ethan Nwaneri.
Nwaneri impressed during Arsenal‘s 1-1 draw against Brighton.
EPA
GettyThe midfielder fired the Gunners into the lead in the first half with a composed finish past Bart Verbruggen.
However, Arteta subbed him at the break despite being one of the better players.
He had picked up a yellow card due to time-wasting for taking too long over a corner.
The manager has now revealed that the teenager was withdrawn from the action due to injury.
Arteta admitted that it is “really bad news” as he insisted Nwaneri was suffering from “muscular issues”.
He said: “Really bad news because I think we’ve lost him.
“We had to take him off at half-time with some muscular issues.”
After Nwaneri came off Arsenal looked a lot less threatening going forward and the Seagulls worked their way back into the game.
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Joao Pedro won and converted a penalty after a clash of heads with William Saliba to level the scores.
Arteta also revealed his opinion on the decision to award the spot-kick.
He fumed: “I’ve never seen a decision like this in my career.
“I asked the boys, and they have never seen anything like it.”
Arteta also admitted that he was disappointed that his side did not claim all three points.
He said: “I’m disappointed because we wanted to win the game.
“We started the game with good actions and a good goal. We knew it was going to be a challenging game.
“We gave too many balls away in the second half and we’re very disappointed with the penalty.
“I’ve never seen that in my life – and Saliba touches the ball. [It wasn’t one] for me, no.
“We’re playing every three days. I understand how much we want to [win], but in terms of the quality and the consistency and doing the simple things right against a competitive team, we didn’t do enough today.”
Arsenal player ratings: Ethan Nwaneri is perfect Bukayo Saka replacement but Gabriel Jesus goes missing against Brighton
ETHAN NWANERI was the brightest spark on the pitch as Arsenal lost further ground int he title race.
SunSport’s Isabelle Barker has given her ratings for the Arsenal players…
DAVID RAYA – 6
The Spanish stopper didn’t have too much to deal with apart from Joao Pedro’s penalty which he went the wrong way for. He couldn’t have done too much about it though, it was a classy finish into the other corner.
THOMAS PARTEY – 6
Partey was ok to start with at right-back but the experiment still looked unconvincing in the second-half, with him struggling to handle Kaoru Mitoma when the Japanese international came on.
WILLIAM SALIBA – 6
The French centre-back was solid up until conceding the crucial penalty for dangerous play against Pedro in the box. If it had been a headbutt, Saliba would have been sent off, in fairness it looked as though he was going for the ball, and it was an unfortunate clash of heads.
GABRIEL MAGALHAES – 5
Started off solidly at the back but faded out with little answers for Brighton’s pressure towards the end.
RICCARDO CALAFIORI – 7
Calafiori was superb, particularly in the first half against Brighton, with the stats speaking for themselves. He won the most duels, completed the most take ons and most tackles. He also misplaced just one of his 22 passes.
JORGINHO – 6
The ex-Chelsea man struggled to receive the ball under pressure, nearly costing Arsenal a goal for the hosts. Generally looked too slow for the game this evening.
MIKEL MERINO – 7
The Spanish midfielder linked up beautifully with Rice for the opener, producing a lovely pass over the top for Nwaneri to latch onto. Merino faded out towards the end though, looking more sluggish and ponderous on the ball as the minutes went by.
DECLAN RICE – 7
The midfielder was the furthest forward, pressing the Brighton backline with Jesus and it worked at first.
He took on the Odegaard role when Arsenal didn’t have possession. Was involved with first big chance with Jesus and then pulled the strings for Nwaneri’s opener.
LEANDRO TROSSARD – 6
The Brighton faithful were booing Trossard from the get go but he didn’t show up to silence them. The Belgian winger offered very little going forward.
ETHAN NWANERI – 8
So good from Nwaneri for the opener. He was involved in the build up with Rice and Merino then put on the afterburners to produce a charging run before slotting the ball into the bottom corner.
What a good replacement Nwaneri has been for Bukayo Saka. He fits the bill with pace, body shape, and a lovely left foot.
GABRIEL JESUS – 5
The striker lashed a shot at Verbruggen for an early warning, but he was offside anyway, wasting the delicious through ball from Jorginho. Was virtually anonymous by the end and Arsenal won’t be able to win the league with a striker like that.
Substitutes
MARTIN ODEGAARD – 6
GABRIEL MARTINELLI – 6
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