Gary Neville has said one of Arsenal’s summer signings is “a lot better” than he imagined, after making an impressive start to the Premier League season.
Neville left impressed after Arsenal thrash Nottingham Forest
The Gunners sent out a message with a 3-0 victory against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, with Martin Zubimendi and Viktor Gyokeres getting on the scoresheet, while fellow summer signing Eberechi Eze grabbed his first assist since arriving from Crystal Palace.
Speaking after the game, Mikel Arteta praised the impact his summer signings made against the Tricky Trees, saying: “The new ones that started, five for them today, really impressed with them. I think you can sense and feel that there are new relationships flourishing there that are going to give us different things.”
Zubimendi stole the headlines, after finding the back of the net twice, either side of Viktor Gyokeres’ third goal of the season, with the Spaniard most notably firing home a volley from just outside the box.
However, goals and assists are not the only metrics on which players should be judged, with Neville taking the time to praise Noni Madueke, who is yet to get off the mark in an Arsenal shirt.
The Sky Sports pundit said: “Madueke is a lot better than I imagined and thought he would be. And certainly a lot better than Arsenal fans thought he would be.
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“A couple of runs that he made for England on Tuesday night were a different level, they’re runs I thought, ‘ooh’. They’re runs… Arjen Robben used to make those runs against me.
“His movement and the things that he’s doing are very, very good, and I’m talking from a full-back’s perspective playing against it.”
Madueke deserves the plaudits after fantastic performance
While the winger was unable to open his account, he undoubtedly put in a fantastic performance against Forest, winning more duels than any other player on the pitch, and making a number of important attacking contributions.
Statistic
Number completed
Successful dribbles
5
Key passes
5
Big chances created
1
Accurate crosses
4
Neville is not the only person to have been left very impressed by the £52m summer signing’s display either, with Arteta adding: “Noni – I thought he was exceptional. We played a front three that had never played [together] before. Overall I am very happy.”
Last season, Arteta was left very short on options in attacking areas at times, with Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka all spending time on the sidelines, which arguably made a major difference in the Premier League title race.
The problem this season, however, is a much nicer one to have, as Arteta may find it difficult to fit all his forwards into the side, given that Saka is expected to return later this month.