Mikel Arteta told to make ‘difficult decision’ at Arsenal alongside Odegaard and Eze

Mikel Arteta has been told to decide on the best position in the squad for summer signing Eberechi Eze.

With Martin Odegaard missing much of this season due to injury, Eze has played regularly in midfield.

However, with club captain Odegaard returning fit, Eze was forced to play on the left wing, a position that did not allow him to play his best football.

At Crystal Palace, Eze played attackingly and always had the freedom to change positions.

But that wasn’t the case at Arsenal. The Gunners have a more structured style of play and Arteta wants his players to follow certain rules.

Against Aston Villa at Villa Park, Eze played on the left wing but was unable to make an impact on the match.

In fact, when Villa took the lead through Matty Cash’s goal, it was Eze who switched on defensively and failed to get the job done.

Could Eze and Odegaard play together at Arsenal?

Mick Brown told Football Insider that Arteta has to make decisions about how to fit Eze and Odegaard in the same team and get the best out of them.

he said:

“There were some doubts about Eze in this Arsenal team.

“Before this move happened, we talked about what his best position would be, because at Palace he was a bit of a free spirit and was allowed to drift around.

“Then we had other players in the team who worked hard at the other end and were ready to get the ball to him in areas where he could be a threat to the opposition.

“When he was in Arsenal’s midfield, Declan Rice and Zvimendi did their dirty work and gave him the role going forward and he made the most of it.

“Now Odegaard is back and he was placed on the wing, but we all know that Eze is not a full-fledged winger and that is not his position.

“So Arteta has big demands, but do he move Eze back into midfield and accept that his abilities are limited, or do he play him out of position?

“There’s an option for him to be someone who fills a spot where they’re needed, and he can do that, but that wouldn’t get the best out of him.

“It’s a difficult decision but the manager has to do something because the defeat against Villa has raised doubts.”

Odegaard and Eze both play centrally and are better when they can attack from behind the striker.

Mikel Arteta has to make some difficult decisions

Could Arteta accept two players playing in the same position in the team? If they can’t do that, were Arsenal justified in spending so much money on Eze in the summer?

These are issues that Arteta and his staff will now have to deal with.

Considering his performance at Villa Park, Eze cannot play wide, there is no doubt about that.

Sometimes fielding a big team can be a headache for a manager, and that could be the case with Arteta at Arsenal this season.

In the coming weeks we will have a better idea of ​​the Spanish coach’s plans and how he will decide how to accommodate two attacking midfielders in the same team.

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