Arsenal starlet Emile Smith Rowe has admitted that this has been the toughest season of his career so far.
Smith Rowe is yet to start a single Premier League match this term, battling with a number of fitness issues. The 22-year-old has surgery last year on a nagging groin problem before straining his thigh just after he was beginning to return to full fitness.
Now, the Hale End academy graduate has opened up on his personal struggles whilst also admitting that he is pleased to see Mikel Arteta's side challenging for the title even in his absence. "Yeah definitely it’s been tough," he told Sky Sports when asked about finding it difficult watching his teammates from the sidelines.
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"Definitely been the hardest season of my career so far. It’s been frustrating, but obviously I’m happy with where the team are at the moment."
The England international enjoyed a stellar 2021/22 campaign, netting ten goals and providing a further two assists in the league - numbers that read even more impressive when you consider that he started just 21 times. When speaking about the talented playmaker last month, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said: "He knows how much we love him, and we know how much we missed him and how much we need his qualities.
"And now he needs to prove it, he needs to prove how much he wants to win, and how much he’s going to contribute to this team to be better and win. And he’s going to have to show that to get in the team.
"I think we have to manage his load, but for sure he’s in a position where we can throw him in the team at any moment. And then it’s about how he’s coping with the team in general and whether we have to take him off or to use him in the last few minutes of the game."
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