Mikel Arteta insists he appreciates Eddie Nketiah’s frustrations and admits the striker has been underused this season.
The 22-year-old is out of contract in the summer and appears certain to leave having failed to win a regular first team place, despite his side’s chronic lack of goals.
Arsenal turned down offers for Nketiah in the summer and again in January, but Arteta has been reluctant to place his faith in a striker who has now gone an entire calendar year without a Premier League goal.
’s departure in January and ’s loss of form has failed to yield more game time and Nketiah all but admitted he was ready to cut ties with his boyhood club.
He told : ‘There have talks and offers of a new contract but at the moment my aim is to play football and play regularly.
“I feel like I’m at the stage where I’ve signed a contract for five years when I was 18 and in that five years, how many starts have I had here? I went on loan for six months and been here for the rest and I have probably started about 30 games maybe in all competitions.
‘I see players my age that I’ve played with and they kick on and it’s like ‘what’s the difference between someone I was playing with at England Under-21s?’.
‘I was the captain for them and they’re doing more. It’s not even a thing of looking at them and hating them, I’m happy for them, but how did they get to the point where they are feeling confident and it’s through playing those games and having that experience.
‘For me to take the next step and get to where I think I can get to I obviously need to consider getting more minutes and playing. That’s the thinking behind it.’
Nketiah started on Saturday as Arsenal slipped to a damaging defeat at Southampon in the absence of Lacazette who has contracted Covid.
Responding to Nketiah’s frustration, Arteta conceded he sympathised with the young forward.
He said: ‘He is right to be upset. This is what we want from the players that haven’t had the minutes. Especially Eddie, because if there is a player in the dressing room that deserves more chances, that is for sure Eddie.
‘With Eddie I said many times as well how much I rate him. That the fact that we have big plans for him at this club for the future, and this is where we are today and we have to accept that reality.’
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