Eddie Nketiah's recent form, including his braces against Leeds and Chelsea have prompted Gunners fans to wonder how they could lost such a talent on a free this summer. Nketiah has reportedly rejected repeated contract offers in the hope to receive assurances of first team football, something he could surely source elsewhere given his impressive recent form.
His run in the team may well be related to this demand and if Mikel Arteta is trying to tempt the 22-year-old into staying then this tactic may work with the team appearing to enjoy having the energy and enthusiasm of Nketiah leading the line.
Alexandre Lacazette is set to leave the club this summer, with his contract set to expire and a lack of goals from the Frenchman also playing a part in Nketiah's promotion to a starting role. Despite this, and much talk of the ongoing striker situation at Arsenal, Arteta has expressed his desire for Nketiah to be 'left alone' as he contemplates a new deal.
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Arteta said after the 2-1 win over Leeds: "Let him be. Let him enjoy the moment and things will happen naturally." If Nketiah stays, he may have to compete with one of Europe's elite strikers, as Arsenal have reportedly drawn up a shortlist of players to bring in should they return to the Champions League for next season.
For this reason, Arteta explained last month why he will let Nketiah decide his own future and won't push the youngster. He said in April: "With Eddie I said so many times how much I rate him and that we have big plans for his future. We have to accept that and it's the reality."
Arteta apologised to Nketiah about his lack of opportunities after the win over Chelsea in April, saying: "I said to him I haven’t been fair. I should have been playing him more. We have other issues as well and that has not been easy. But he deserved completely what happened to him tonight."
Nketiah's Arsenal career has seen him notch 22 goals in 89 appearances, which is an impressive record, and the Daily Mail report that Europa League semi-finalists West Ham could be ready to make a move. At 22, the time could be right for the player to seek more first team opportunities, something which he has alluded to in the past.
Earlier this month, he explained his position on the Beautiful Game Podcast : “There have been offers of a new contract but at the moment my aim is to play football and play regularly. That’s my ambition and that’s what I hope to do. But at the same time I’m at Arsenal; I love Arsenal.
“I’m just trying to focus on the season until May and make sure I finish that in a good way and then sit down and see what I think is the best opportunity to allow me to take those steps and develop.
“I feel like I’m at the stage where I’ve signed a contract for five years when I was 18 and in that five years, how many starts have I had here? I went on loan for six months and been here for the rest. And I have probably started about 30 games maybe in all competitions.
“I see players my age that I’ve played with and they kick on and it’s like, ‘what’s the difference between someone I was playing with at England Under-21s?’."
Nketiah is expected to wait until the end of the season before making a decision on his future and could be persuaded by his increased game time, although football.london understands that Arsenal are targeting two news forwards this summer.
