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3. Nketiah was the wrong call

Mikel Arteta’s most significant selection was to drop Alexandre Lacazette for Eddie Nketiah at the centre-forward position. Many had called for Lacazette to be dropped but presumed that would include Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang moving centrally. Arteta did the first part, but he persisted with Aubameyang out wide.

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Nketiah was a brave call, but it was the wrong one. The value of Lacazette, even when he is playing poorly and not scoring goals, is his hold-up play. He backs into defenders, his touch is excellent, he drops into midfield and smooths out the attacking play, even creating chances as he turns and feeds runners beyond him. Nketiah is not that type of player.

Nketiah is an Aubameyang-type player. He does not want to get involved in build-up play. He is a natural goalscorer, someone who likes to play on the shoulder of the defence and convert chances. He is quite happy to never touch the ball until it enters the six-yard box and he is tapping it into the net. So when you have Aubameyang, who is a superior player of this goalscoring ilk, why start Nketiah?

Nketiah tried to play in a manner like Lacazette. In the first half, he frequently dropped deep and asked for the ball into his feet. But his touch was inconsistent and passes rarely came his way. Only Bernd Leno had fewer touches in the opening 45 minutes. If Arteta wanted a Lacazette-type centre-forward, he should have played Lacazette; if he wanted an Aubameyang-type centre-forward, he should have played Aubameyang. In the end, he did neither.