Mikel Arteta's faith in Eddie Nketiah has actually been on show prior to this season with Arsenal desperately needing the forward in this campaign to fill the lofty shoes of Gabriel Jesus following his knee injury.
A significant issue suffered at the World Cup to the Brazil international looked set to greatly impact the Gunners in their title pursuit, but Nketiah, who was to be the man deployed in his place, had the support of Arteta. “We have more faith in Eddie every single day,” Arteta said ahead of Arsenal's first game back from the World Cup against West Ham.
“We see every day what he brings to the team, what he is as a human being and the way he is developing as a player. We got a great response last year when we needed him and he did really well for the team.” “He is ready. That is why he signed his contract. He is a key player in our squad and he is going to have chances to play,” he added.
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That faith from his manager was duly repaid with Nketiah scoring goals against West Ham and Brighton before netting a vital brace in the dramatic 3-2 win against Manchester United at Emirates Stadium. As a result of his purple patch of goal scoring form in the latter half of last season, the 23-year-old signed a new long-term contract in the summer and was handed Thierry Henry's iconic No.14 shirt.
It has been far from easy in north London for Nketiah though with three managers at the helm of the club during his time in the first-team. Arteta has worked with Nketiah for the longest amount of time and despite having to impress three different managers, the Spaniard has showed faith in the former Chelsea youth star from his first day at the club.
Speaking exclusively to The Times, Nketiah said: “From the time I broke into the first team, we had three different managers. I made my debut under Wenger, did well, felt like I had made progress after scoring, and then a new manager comes in, Unai [Emery], and you have to do the process all over again. And again when Mikel [Arteta] came in.
“It’s been nice under Mikel, it’s been stable. I have to say since the day he came in, he said, ‘I believe in you and I’ll give you opportunities’, and he’s done that. I’ve improved so much thanks to him.”
“There was talk about my contract and me signing [an extension] or not and I hadn’t played a lot,” he said. “My first Premier League start of the season was versus Southampton, the game before Chelsea, and scoring those goals was a big moment for me, one where all the work over the years came together. My dad always says, ‘It never goes unknown — God always gives you your rewards.’"
Arsenal legend Arsene Wenger was the first coach to work with Nketiah in a senior capacity and the Frenchman's opinion on him seems to have been proven right. Back in 2017, when Nketiah was 18, Wenger said: “He has a nose for the goal but he’s not only a goal-getter. That is what is interesting with him.”
Both on and off the pitch, it has been proven that Nketiah has an elite level mentality with his work ethic paramount to the success he is now enjoying at Arsenal. While Nketiah's best quality certainly is his ability to find the back of the net, the worried drop off without Jesus and his impressive hold-up play has not been prominent, with Nketiah more than happy to put in the hard yards away from the opposition's goal.
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