Arsenal Vs Bournemouth: Eddie Nketiah proves his goalscoring knack

Eddie Nketiah made his first start since returning to Arsenal earlier this month in Monday’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth. He immediately illustrated his knack for goalscoring. It will take him a very long way.

As soon as Eddie Nketiah showed for the ball midway through the Bournemouth half, his back to the goal and a defender right up his backside, it was clear what he wanted to do: score.

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The young Arsenal striker teed up the onrushing Joe Willock with a first-time layoff and immediately burst towards the penalty area. Willock would then play the ball wide to Bukayo Saka, who was in acres of space as a result of the Gunners’ combination play in midfield. Saka received the ball, looked up, and played a pinpoint low cross into Nketiah, who swept home from the edge of the six-yard case.

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In his post-match press conference, his manager explained that this nous and movement is why Nketiah scores so many goals:

"“You look at him on the wing and three seconds later you look at the cross and he is there all the time in the middle of the goal. That’s why he scored a goal. He is always in the middle of the goal, ready to do that and also the way he works without the ball is terrific.”"

There is an eagerness and desperation from Nketiah to get on the end of the service his teammates provide for him. Unlike other centre-forwards who are more cerebral and motivated to get involved in play throughout matches, Nketiah is interested in one thing and one thing only: goals, and almost every decision he makes on the pitch is geared towards scoring.

This is not to say that he is selfish or blinkered to the dirty work that a modern-day striker must undertake. He was more than willing to run the hard yards on Monday night, chasing down loose balls, running the channels to release pressure, closing down defenders and the goalkeeper at times.

Rather, it is an appraisal of his natural, innate understanding of how to score goals. He does not drift wide without the intention of later getting into central areas. He does not drop into the midfield without then spinning in behind the defence. He is always alive to potential openings, he comes alive in the penalty area, and he is calm, composed and clinical when the opportunity arises.

Despite being in and out of the starting line-up, he has six goals in 769 minutes in all competitions this season. He scored nine goals in 887 Premier League 2 minutes for Arsenal under-23s last season and 12 in 1170 minutes the year before. He has been prolific at every level of his young career, and it is all because of this insatiable knack for being in the right place at the right time.

Nketiah is, as they say, a natural-born goalscorer. He proved it once more against Bournemouth on Monday night. As with every passing goal, he is looking more and more like his great hero, an equally prolific goal-getter, Ian Wright.