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3 standout players from Arsenal’s impressive pre-season

By Krish Ajmani

Arsenal's Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus (C) celebrates after scoring his team second goal during a club friendly football match between Arsenal and Sevilla at the Emirates Stadium in London on July 30, 2022. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal's Brazilian forward Gabriel Jesus (C) celebrates after scoring his team second goal during a club friendly football match between Arsenal and Sevilla at the Emirates Stadium in London on July 30, 2022. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Five wins from five. 24 goals. four conceded. No new players injured and plenty to get excited about. The perfect pre-season.

Depending on whether a game is won or lost, fans will decide the importance of pre-season. If their team loses, it is “just preseason” and mainly for conditioning. If their team wins, pre-season is an accurate indicator of performances to come when the season starts.

Regardless of the weight given to it, pre-season does at the very least provide interesting talking points and topics for discussion. While numerous Arsenal players have shown their quality this summer, some particularly made fans sit up and take notice.

3 standout players from Arsenal’s impressive pre-season

Here are three standout players from Arsenal’s impressive pre-season.

3. Eddie Nketiah

Eddie Nketiah will be vying for a starting berth in the Premier League. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
Eddie Nketiah will be vying for a starting berth in the Premier League. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /

The player that was too good for academy football and who was stuck behind Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang finally got a chance to show his quality. A sparkling finish to last season saw Eddie Nketiah rewarded with a new bumper contract and the number 14.

While some fans certainly rated the Englishman, others viewed him as substandard and a serviceable, if average, backup. This pre-season, he has elevated his level once again.

Nketiah has not shown any new traits in the build-up to an exciting new campaign. He has merely demonstrated that he can consistently replicate the qualities he teased last season.

The centre-forward has shown his clinical edge, pouncing on loose balls in the box. He has also shown his ability to turn away from clumsy defenders, tip-toeing around them with quick feet before releasing runners into space. Nketiah’s dribbling has gone from a major weakness to an integral part of his all-around game.

Gabriel Jesus’ move to north London will not signal Nketiah’s permanent relegation to the bench as previous transfers have. There are plenty of minutes to distribute around the squad and although the Brazilian will surely catch headlines, Nketiah has shown his exceptional pedigree game after game. Hopefully, he can bring his form into the Premier League.

Continued on the next slide…

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