Speaking after the Gunners’ 1-0 defeat against Newcastle United, Arsenal legend Ian Wright insisted that manager Mikel Arteta is putting Ethan Nwaneri under a lot of pressure at his tender age.
The 17-year-old English-Nigerian attacking midfielder replaced Gabriel Martinelli in the second half during the defeat to Newcastle at St. James’ Park at the weekend.
Despite having only 11 touches, Nwaneri successfully completed all six of his passes during his short appearance.
His efforts were not enough to change the course of the match, leading to Wright’s critical analysis of the team’s overall performance.
The former Arsenal striker pointed to a lack of creativity, emphasizing that the absence of Martin Ødegaard due to injury should not serve as an excuse for the team’s struggles.
Wright also raised eyebrows over the summer transfer decisions that saw Fabio Vieira loaned to Porto and Emile Smith Rowe sold to Fulham.
Both players, he argued, could have provided valuable attacking options in a game that highlighted Arsenal’s deficiencies in creativity.
“Yeah, there were too many players off-key,” Wright remarked in an interview with reporters.
“Odegaard has been out for a while now. Fabio Vieira, we hadn’t seen too much of him, and he was a player meant to be in the same mould.
“Emile Smith Rowe has moved on. We have seen Ethan Nwaneri come on, a youngster who’s got to come on in a game for a team that’s trying to challenge for the title. It’s a lot of pressure on him,” he said.
Despite the disappointing result, 17-year-old Nwaneri has been making waves in the first team this season, having scored three goals across seven matches in all competitions.
His performances have caught the eye of both Arteta and the Arsenal faithful, but the pressure to deliver in high-stakes matches continues to mount as the team navigates a challenging season.
