Arsenal: Reiss Nelson doing precisely what is needed

Reiss Nelson scored on his debut from Hoffenheim on Saturday. The young Arsenal winger is doing precisely what is needed to make this loan season a success.

Reiss Nelson wanted regular first-team football. He wanted it a year ago after he impressed mightily in Arsenal’s preseason tour of Australia. He never really got it — he may have made 15 appearances in all competitions, but only five of them were starts in the Europa League or Premier League and none of them came during the serious periods of those competitions.

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Nelson wanted more. He felt he deserved more. Whether he did or not didn’t really matter. He believed he did. And so, when the summer rolled around, Nelson was indignant: Unai Emery must give him more playing time otherwise he would leave. Emery couldn’t guarantee the playing time. So Nelson left.

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In leaving, Nelson signed a new long-term contract to keep him in north London for the long-term while moving to Julian Nagelsmann’s Hoffenheim for a season-long loan. It was a brave decision, perhaps indicative of the self-belief this bright, young prospect possesses. But it was also one that only pays off if Nelson actually gets what he wants, that being regular playing time. Good job, then, that he decided to score in his first appearance for the club.

Introduced for the final 18 minutes of play, Nelson was tasked with hauling his Hoffenheim side back into a match. They were 1-0 down at the time. By the 85th minute, he had done very little. By the 86th, he had changed the game entirely with two brilliant touches.

With Hoffenheim pressing for an equaliser, a ball squirmed loose in the penalty area. It looped into the air and looked to land on the left edge of the penalty area. Nelson would be the first to meet it. With his first touch, he superbly cushioned the ball to veer around the defender and into space down the inside-left channel of the penalty area. With his second touch, he slid a lovely, low strike across the face of the goalkeeper and into the far corner of the goal.

Hoffenheim would actually go on to lose the match, but Nelson’s impact was clear and his quality so wonderfully presented for all to see. It remains to be seen what the plans Nagelsmann has for the 18-year-old this season. I am sure he sold the dream of regular starts otherwise Nelson would never have agreed to the move given his motives throughout his young, burgeoning career thus far.

But if Nagelsmann did need some convincing about whether Nelson was ready to cut it in the Bundesliga, then this was it. Nelson is competing for playing time and he has to prove that he is worthy of starts. In these early stages of his loan, it is vital that he is able to demonstrate his ability and force his way into the team, otherwise, he may never get the opportunity that he so desperately yearns for.

Nelson is doing precisely what is needed to have a successful loan spell. It has been an excellent start for the young Arsenal winger. Long may it continue.