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Arsenal are riding the crest of a wave in the Premier League this season, and are well-placed to win the title after winning back-to-back-to-back silver medals.

It’s been a long time coming, and this envious position is a result of hard, meticulous work from Mikel Arteta and his team. Arsenal are rock-solid at the back, industrious in the middle and crafty up top, arguably boasting the most complete team in Europe.

But with title rivals Manchester City closing in on Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo ahead of the January transfer window, Arteta has made it clear that he’s ready to plug any gaps in his squad, with a midfielder being eyed.

Arsenal consider winter midfield upgrade

Arsenal lack defensive depth, with a number of Gunners stars out injured. Technical director Andrea Berta also continues to search for a left-sided forward, but Arteta is also keen on bringing a centre-midfielder over to the club.

Mikel Merino, for example, flattered to deceive during Arsenal’s recent win over Aston Villa, and with Declan Rice missing that one out due to injury, the Emirates side might want to pounce on one of their central targets.

Just after Christmas, it emerged that Arsenal have been keeping tabs on Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay, who has been a revelation in Italy but may be somewhat disgruntled in Naples.

According to Caught Offside, the Gunners are ready to rival Manchester United, the 29-year-old’s former employers, for his signature in 2026, and it is expected to cost them around £60m.

Why Scott McTominay would be a Merino upgrade

McTominay has bloomed into a remarkable, talismanic player since leaving Manchester United and joining Napoli, someone who could make more of an impact in the Premier League than Merino. That’s no discredit to the Spanish star, rather, an illustration of the Scottish hero’s quality.

Arsenal gave Aston Villa a hiding before the New Year, but Merino did drift through that one, slightly incongruous beside the fluent Martins in the middle. Football.london saw it fit to hand the 29-year-old a match-low 5/10 rating.

That’s not to say that Merino hasn’t been indispensable at times since moving to the club from Real Sociedad in 2024, but in McTominay, Arteta would land a slight improvement who could have a significant impact in affecting the subtleties of a title race against one of Pep Guardiola’s sides.

After all, the 2024/25 Serie A MVP has changed the narrative that dogged him during his Old Trafford days, hailed by content creator Adam Joseph as being a “true superstar of European and world football”

The two players are actually quite alike. Data-driven platform FBref liken Merino to McTominay, and it’s clear to see why. It’s also easy to read that McTominay has a more rounded game, more progressive on the ball and crisper in his distribution.

McTominay vs Merino (past 12 months)

Stats (per 90)

McTominay

Merino

Goals scored

0.37

0.39

Assists

0.13

0.24

Touches

43.21

42.27

Shots taken

2.53

1.75

Shot-creating actions

2.27

2.55

Pass completion (%)

84.4

76.5

Progressive passes

3.42

4.04

Progressive carries

1.46

0.86

Successful take-ons

1.17

0.40

Ball recoveries

4.07

4.25

Tackles + interceptions

1.83

2.64

Aerials won

1.85

2.97

Data via FBref

Once described as a “physical monster” by ex-Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær, McTominay has the grittiness to match the glamour, and it is for this season that he would be such an interesting addition to Arsenal’s outfit, adding a different dimension. In Serie A this season, he has averaged 5.5 duels per game.

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But perhaps most critically, McTominay has a big-game presence that could help tip the odds for Arsenal as they chase down football’s biggest prizes.

It’s important that Arteta uses any titles secured this season as a springboard for a sustained period of glittering success. Merino is a core part of this project, but Arsenal have reached a position from which they can be picky.

If it is deemed that a midfield upgrade is needed in the not-too-distant future, then McTominay would represent the subtle upgrade who can make all the difference for a side with greater ambitions than most.

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Arsenal secured a title-defining victory over Aston Villa in the Premier League.

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Defending SA20 champions MI Cape Town failed to complete the tournament’s highest successful chase in their two home games and have also stumbled attempting to hunt down the biggest target in Paarl. They remain winless after four games and lost a thriller at Boland Park, where they were defeated by one run to remain at the bottom of the table.Victory was sweet for their noisy neighbours, Paarl Royals, who started well and scored briskly to reach 181, their highest score at this venue, and then defended it fiercely on a slow pitch. Most pleasing for Paarl will be the return to form of their young opener Lhuan-dre Pretorius, whose T20 career-best 98 anchored their innings and the way their bowlers stuck to the task.A target of 160-plus had only been successfully chased in the SA20 at Boland Park once before, but MICT were off to a good start. They were 109 for 1 after 12 overs before Ottneil Baartman and Sikandar Raza sparked a massive collapse.MICT lost five wickets for nine runs in 18 balls and the cat-and-mouse game began. MICT needed 50 runs from the last four overs, 30 from the last two and 15 off the last one, thanks to a 51-run partnership from George Linde and Rashid Khan for the seventh-wicket. Baartman broke the stand in the final over and picked up the wicket of Kagiso Rabada to finish with 4 for 51. In the process, Baartman also became the second bowler, after Marco Jansen, to reach 50 SA20 wickets.Lhuan-dre Pretorius’ big hits took Paarl Royals to a competitive total•SA20

The openers sparkling start

The last time Paarl played at home, they were bowled out for 49, but they shelved those memories and more than doubled that score in the first half of their innings today. Pretorius and Asa Tribe combined to put the much-vaunted MICT attack to the sword. They took 13 runs off Rabada’s first over and 16 off each of Dane Piedt and Rashid’s opening overs with an array of boundaries in the V.Tribe was particularly good at attacking short balls and Pretorius’ use of his feet, especially against Rabada. The pair put on Paarl’s third-highest opening stand in SA20 history before Tribe was caught on the deep mid-wicket boundary off Rashid. Pretorius went on to register his ninth fifty in T20s and seemed set to double up.

Chasing the century

On a track that is known to slow down, Paarl were kept quiet for the five overs between 10 and 15 and managed just 30 runs despite the presence of their big-hitting captain, David Miller. In the 16th over, Pretorius slog swept Linde for six to enter the 60s, but two more quiet overs and the departure of Raza followed.Paarl and Pretorius worked their way to their last over on 166 for 3 and 84 respectively. Rabada would deliver the last six balls. He started with a slower ball that Pretorius edged wide of Ryan Rickelton for four. Then he bowled a wide. Pretorius dragged the next delivery from outside off over the leg side to enter the 90s. His partner, Delano Potgieter, ran hard for him as they took three twos of the next three balls, leaving Pretorius on 98 with one to face. Rabada’s death bowling outsmarted the 19-year-old batter, and he finished with a wide yorker that Pretorius could not make contact with.Rassie van der Dussen struck 59 off 42 balls•SA20

Remember Rassie?

Rickelton was the subject of much discussion after his T20 World Cup exclusion and began making his case with 30 runs from the first 15 balls he faced. Rassie van der Dussen, on 15 off 16 in the same time, only had an outside chance of making the national squad but served up a reminder of what he can do in a stunning takedown of Paarl’s premier seamer, Baartman, who was also left of the T20 World Cup playing group.In the final over of the powerplay, van der Dussen sent Baartman out of the ground, then over square and then over extra cover for three sixes in four balls and took his score to 33 off 21 deliveries. MICT ended the powerplay on 64 without loss and van der Dussen went on to make 59 off 42 balls.

Jason Smith in the spotlight

The biggest surprise in South Africa’s T20 World Cup squad, which was named earlier on Friday, was Jason Smith, amid many questions. Smith has only played two T20Is, was the 19th highest run-scorer in the T20 competition but has a reputation as a big-hitter. He wasn’t able to show that in Paarl. He pushed the first ball he faced from Baartman a single and then missed a cross seam delivery that he tried to whip over mid-wicket. He was struck in front of the middle and leg and wanted to review but Nicholas Pooran convinced him not to, and rightly so. Smith was out for 1 and will know all eyes will be on him as the tournament progresses. Smith was the second wicket in that Baartman over and the second in a spectacular MI collapse of five wickets for nine runs.

Ahead of Dhaka Dynamites’ match against Comilla Victorians on Wednesday, Mustafizur Rahman was told by one of the team’s officials that he had become the first Bangladeshi to make it to the ICC ODI team of the year. Mustafizur liked what he heard and accepted his team-mates’ praise, but there wasn’t much time to react considering he a game to prepare for. Besides, it is not as if he tends to react to anything in a big way.”I was on the field when everyone started to congratulate me,” Mustafizur said. “I felt really good after hearing the news, because I am the first from my country. I am obviously very happy, bound to be happy that I am among the big players in the world.”After several one-liners and some single-word answers, Mustafizur was asked if he really doesn’t have much to say or chooses to remain reserved. The 20-year old said it was the former, but he means well and he looked genuinely happy and proud of what he had done.Mustafizur introduced himself to ODI cricket with a five-for and a six-for against India in June. Between September 18, 2014 to September 13, 2015 (the qualification period), he had played only six ODIs, taking 18 wickets at an average of 12.61 and a strike rate of 17.7. The other bowlers in the ICC XI had a lot more matches under their belt – Mitchell Starc and Imran Tahir had played 22 matches each, Trent Boult’s tally stood at 19 and Mohammad Shami’s was 14. Mustafizur said he was humbled to be in such good company.Mashrafe Mortaza, the Bangladesh captain, had first seen Mustafizur in the nets last year and knew there were big things in store.”His achievements make us proud,” Mashrafe said. “I hope he will hold on to his successes. He will be a regular Test player too. A young cricketer to reach such heights is a matter of pride for all Bangladeshis. We never thought he would achieve so much in such a short period of time. Not just making it in the ICC ODI team of the year, he has completely changed the balance of the Bangladesh team.”I would also hope that all of these things don’t put him under pressure. He will have bad days, but people shouldn’t put pressure on him. We have to support him. If he can serve the Bangladesh team for another 10-15 years, he will reach an unprecedented height.”Mustafizur speaks very little in front of an audience, but he is free and frank in front of friends, team-mates and the same journalists when there are no cameras around. As it happens with people who are soft-spoken, it sometimes takes those few words to sum up what they are all about.When asked if he felt excited seeing the congratulatory message on the big screen at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Mustafizur became serious and said, “The achievement is different, and the match is different.” He couldn’t have put it any better.

Daren Powell will in all likelihood stay back in England © Getty Images

Daren Powell, the West Indian fast bowler, is expected to sign for Glamorgan and play the rest of the season in England, according to a report on the BBC website.Glamorgan have been in talks with Powell and hope the 29-year old West Indian fast bowler will be signed in time for the side’s first Natwest Pro40 match against Derbyshire on July 16. Powell is currently in England, playing for the touring West Indies.”We wanted someone playing here already and the West Indies squad was the first port of call,” said Adrian Shaw, the Glamorgan coach. “He’s slightly slower than Fidel Edwards but still bowls at around 85 miles an hour and has got a much more solid action.”He looks as though he’ll stay fit and play a lot of cricket. He’s a strong lad and a much improved bowler.”Powell has played 22 Tests for the West Indies and has played overseas for Gauteng in South Africa. He previously had a brief spell with Derbyshire in 2004.Meanwhile, Glamorgan allrounder Damien Wright has returned to Australia for an ankle surgery. The county are without the services of Simon Jones and England A seamer David Harrison, both suffering from injuries.Jones is struggling with a knee problem while a back problem has ruled out Harrison for the rest of the season. Powell would join a young attack that includes 17-year old James Harris and 20-year old Huw Waters.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Syed Rasel’s incisive burst was a catalyst for Bangladesh’s victory © Getty Images

Mashrafe Mortaza held his nerve to steer Bangladesh to a frenetic two-wicket win, and with it the series, in the second one-day international at Nairobi. Bangladesh looked down and out after Kenya’s merry band of slow medium pacers, led by Thomas Odoyo , struck telling blows to leave them up the creek in pursuit of a meager total, but Mortaza’s unbeaten 43 in a ninth-wicket stand of 51 sealed the deal in incredible style. Kenya, riding on Odoyo’s career-best 84, had themselves done well to recover from Syed Rasel’s four-wicket burst but ultimately a target of 185 proved too little for Bangladesh.Joined by Abdur Razzak at the exit of Khaled Mashud in the 38th over, with Bangladesh on 134 for 8, Mortaza played an innings of tremendous courage under fire. He farmed the strike much like Odoyo did with the Kenyan tail, used the long handle to fine effect – he found the ropes off consecutive balls during the 44th over – and even gave Razzak an earful when one too many a needless shot was played. Collins Obuya began the 47th over with a tossed-up no ball, Mortaza smashed it with ease through the covers and the game ended in something of an anti-climax for the expectant Kenyan supporters. But for Bangladesh, Mortaza’s personal best was paramount in them bouncing back from a series loss to Zimbabwe.At one point, though, Bangladesh looked far from victory. Peter Ongondo gave Kenya the start they needed when he forced Rajin Saleh to cut to a juggling Collins Obuya at backward point in the sixth over. Nehemiah Odhiambo was all over the place with his medium pacers and gave up seven extras in his opening spell but accounted for Shahriar Nafees who, given the width, drove to an airborn Obuya at gully this time.After rescuing Kenya from the dolls with the bat, Odoyo then resumed duties with the ball. Saqibul Hossain was the third wicket to fall when he played away from his body and Kennedy Otieno held a fine in front of where first slip would have been. Enter Mohammad Ashraful, who slapped his first ball back past the bowler and mid-off for four and then chased a wide delivery only to see Otieno take an even better blinder in front of that vacant first slip gap. His magic continued, thanks to an amazing catch by Tanmay Mishra. Ferhad Reza, given a reprieve when he edged Josephat Ababu just wide of Otieno, was afforded no further escapes as he slammed one into the covers and Mishra held it one-handed, inches off the ground.Aftab Ahmed unleashed the drive of the day – a firm push between the cover fielders for four – to announce his arrival but had to withdraw into a shell after the early wickets. He did manage a six off Ababu in the 24th over but on 38 he pulled Odhiambo to Steve Tikolo at square leg. Mashud, meanwhile, took 19 deliveries to get off the mark and looked on as Odoyo returned to nail Mohammad Rafique leg before in the 32nd over. He eventually hooked Ababu high to Hitesh Modi at long leg and it came down to Mashrafe Mortaza and Abdul Razzak to see Bangladesh home. While Razzak left Bangladesh’s fans with their hearts in their mouths, Mortaza played some fine shots and was the difference between victory and defeat.Earlier, a fiery opening burst from Rasel – and a poor decision against Tikolo – never allowed the Kenyan innings to take flight. Rasel bowled out his spell (10-1-22-4) on the trot and stifled the Kenyan batsmen from the word go. The out-of-form Otieno went leg before in the third over, Jimmy Kamande edged to Mashud in the tenth, and Maurice Ouma and Obuya were each forced into loose shots soon after.Clearly feeling left out of the party, Mortaza struck in his first over, the 12th of the innings, with some help from umpire Subhash Modi who unfortunately adjudged Tikolo leg before despite evidence of a thick edge onto the pads. Tikolo played forward to a ball that came in and looked up in surprise to see the throaty appeal from bowler and fielders upheld. Mortaza then removed Modi with a beauty that caught the batsman clueless and dead in front of the stumps as Kenya slipped to 42 for 5.Thanks to Odoyo, who proved that if you stick around long enough runs will come, Kenya rallied to get across the 100-run mark and beyond. Odoyo refrained from any injudicious shots, saw off the medium pacers and the very impressive Razzak, and then went ballistic at the end of the innings. He marshaled the tail well – his ability to steal a single at the end of the over was paramount – and opened his arms with two slogged sixes off Rafique, and dingers three and four off Mortaza and Saqibul at the death. His 58-run stand for the ninth wicket with Ondongo (13) was the highest of the Kenyan innings by far.

Inzaman-ul-Haq can opt out of the Afro-Asian Cup if he wishes to. © Getty Images

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has said that it will not force its players to play in the Afro-Asia Cup to be held in South Africa in August. It has said that the cricketers could decide whether they wished to play in the series comprising three one-day internationals between Asia XI and Africa XI .”No player would be pressed to play the matches which have been given official status by the International Cricket Council (ICC). We’ll ask them [players] if they want to make themselves available, but if any player wants to skip the event it’s all right with us,” said a senior PCB official quoted in Apart from Shoaib Akthar, Younis Khan and Danish Kaneria, who are playing for English counties, none of the other Pakistan cricketers have any cricket commitments until October when England is scheduled to tour Pakistan.Saleem Altaf, PCB Director Cricket Operations, said that the Asia XI selection committee would meet in Dubai on August 1 to select the squad. “Majid Khan [Pakistan], Ravi Shastri [India]. Graeme Labrooy [Sri Lanka] and Shafiq-ul-Islam [Bangladesh] will meet to finalise the Asian XI squad,” said Altaf. “But before that we’ve to inform them about the number of players available for selection.” He also said that he hoped that the best players would be available to play.The first game of the Afro-Asian Cup, which has been given official status by the ICC, will be held at Cape Town on August 17. The proceeds from the tournament will go to the Asian and African cricket associations and also to the recently-formed Afro-Asian Cricket Council.

Michael Bevan is eager to make a rapid return to county cricket, after his unexpected axing from Cricket Australia’s list of contracted players for the 2004-05 season.Bevan, 34 next month, has enjoyed successful stints with Yorkshire in 1995 and 1996, Sussex between 1998 and 2000, and Leicestershire in 2002. He will be meeting up with his manager Robert Joske on Thursday to discuss the options available to him.The timing of Cricket Australia’s announcement is particularly galling for Bevan, because most counties have not only signed up their two overseas players for the season, but have also nominated replacements in the event of an international call-up. “At this late stage, beggars can’t be choosers," Joske admitted to AAP, "but we were already looking at a short-term stint for him on the basis that he would be playing for Australia."I’m keen now to continue looking at that and also to find out if there is any opportunity for a full-term stint," added Joske. "We’re not going to play all our cards too early. We will meet tomorrow and discuss the various options available for him, and what he wants for his career and his family.”

The Australian Cricket Board (ACB) announced today that the National Selection Panel (NSP) has chosen Queensland Bulls captain Jimmy Maher to join the Australian Test squad on the Travelex Tour of the West Indies.Maher, Australia’s reserve wicket-keeper at the 2003 International Cricket Council Cricket World Cup has been selected to cover for Adam Gilchrist during Australia’s three-day tour match against a University of West Indies XI in Barbados, beginning on 26 April.It will be the first match Gilchrist has missed since Australia’s victory over Holland in a World Cup preliminary match on 20 February.NSP Chairman Trevor Hohns said given Maher’s likely selection in the 15-man squad for Australia’s seven one-day internationals beginning on 17 May, it made sense to choose a player who would be with the side for the remainder of the tour."Jimmy will more than likely be part of our one-day squad in the West Indies simply on his batting alone, so it is important that we continue to give him added `keeping experience if he is to continue covering adequately for Adam Gilchrist on tour," Hohns said."We are not necessarily saying that Jimmy is the country’s second-best wicket-keeping option, but for this match we would rather introduce a player who is going to be with the team for the duration of the trip, rather than fly someone across for a few days."As for Adam Gilchrist, it is important that we continue to monitor his workload and give him time-off where possible."He has had a long campaign and doesn’t get many opportunities to rest, so we need to be conscious that he doesn’t get over-worked and end up suffering from fatigue," he said.Maher’s inclusion in the Test squad means that he will relinquish his Australia A captaincy duties for the remainder of its series against South Africa A. He will depart Adelaide for Brisbane today.New South Wales Blues batsman Simon Katich will stand in as captain.

After a disappointing performance by New Zealand, the Kiwi captainStephen Fleming still remained positive about his side’s chances ofmaking it to the Coca-Cola Cup final."I think we’ve got a good chance. If India lose tomorrow we arethrough to the final. We can put aside this dismal performance andcome back with a good one when we meet India," said Fleming whoseside was comprehensively beaten by Sri Lanka by 107 runs."Very disappointing performance. But once again the Sri Lankansplayed exceptionally well. We didn’t push hard in this game,"reflected Fleming. "We’ve never played on this ground. So we didn’tknow what’s a good score. The partnerships helped the Sri Lankans toput up a good score."The Black Caps so far in the tournament have been struggling againstspin. But this time around the fast bowlers did most of the damage,"The fast bowlers really bowled well. They achieved a lot of movementand took the game away from us. They just destroyed us in the firstten overs," said Fleming.Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya was thrilled about his side’sperformance. "It was a good all-round performance. It was nice to gopast 220 and then the bowlers did very well to restrict them. Thecream of the batting was back in the pavilion by the 10th over."Fleming put Sri Lanka in on winning the toss. Jayasuriya revealed hewould have done the same had he had won the toss. "It was a good tossto lose. I would have bowled first had I won the toss."Jayasuriya was also happy with the way the batsmen played. "All thebatsmen are among the runs. That’s what is important. Only Mahela wasstruggling and now he’s among the runs as well. After this, hisconfidence level was high and this was evident in the field."Sri Lanka are through to the final and when asked as whether theywould rest some of the players to give others a chance, Jayasuriyasaid, "We haven’t decided on the team for the Indian game yet."Man of the match Chaminda Vaas bowled a superb spell of fast bowlingchanging the cause of the game as he sent back three of the top orderbatsmen back to the pavilion in his first spell."I would have loved to bowl first. The conditions were ideal for fastbowling. But things worked very well for me later in the day," saidthe Sri Lankan fast bowler. "I loved the wicket of Jacob Oram. Theball really moved away from the batsman."Vaas who bowled a first spell of 5-1-10-3 did not get any wickets inhis second spell, "I would have loved to end up with five wickets andSanath gave me a second spell as well but it didn’t work."

The mood around Arsenal is a lot more nervous than it was a few weeks ago.

Sure, Mikel Arteta’s side are still top of the Champions League and Premier League, but their recent performances have left a lot to be desired.

Moreover, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, in particular Phil Foden, appear to be getting back to the very best.

However, while the atmosphere around the club is a little down at the moment, there is still a lot to be optimistic about for Arsenal, and there could be even more should Arteta opt hand his own version of Foden more minutes in place of Martin Odegaard and Eberechi Eze.

Odegaard & Eze's seasons so far

Now, it should be said that neither Odegaard nor Eze have had a bad season for Arsenal so far.

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In fact, both players have had some really impressive moments in red and white, but it’s also true that they’ve been somewhat disappointing at times.

Starting with the former Crystal Palace star, it would be fair to say that few signings in the Emirates era have been met with such excitement from the fans.

However, while he scored the incredible hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur and that acrobatic effort against his own side, there have been more than a few games in which he’s totally ghosted.

For example, away to Aston Villa, he was removed at half-time, and then at home against Wolverhampton Wanderers, he created practically nothing and again had to be removed from the game.

With that said, Eze’s talent is still incredibly evident, and with more time, he’ll surely become more and more effective for the North Londoners.

Moving on to the club captain, the most disappointing aspect of his campaign so far this year is that he hasn’t been available enough.

The Norwegian is never going to be as flash as the Englishman, but his ability to move the ball up the pitch, instigate the press and keep hold of the ball has been instrumental for the team over the last few years.

So, the fact that he’s played just 620 minutes of action across 13 matches and already missed 66 days of action through injury this year is far from ideal.

Moreover, this has unsurprisingly led him to look a little rusty at times when he has come on or started games.

In all, Eze and Odegaard are hugely talented footballers, but Arteta doesn’t have to, nor should he, rely solely on them, especially when he has someone in the squad who could become Arsenal’s answer to Foden.

Arsenal's answer to Foden

Arsenal have plenty of seriously talented players in their squad, but when it comes down to someone who could be their answer to Foden, only one player comes to mind: Ethan Nwaneri.

Now, this isn’t to say that the Hale Ender is as good as the City star at the moment.

However, there is every chance that the youngster could become as much of a game-changer as his compatriot, especially as there are already several parallels between them.

For example, both players have come through the academies of a ‘big six’ side; they are both English and, more crucially, share some similarities in how they play the game.

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Like the City star, the 18-year-old is primarily an attacking midfielder, but has plenty of experience playing out wide and has proven himself capable of playing there at a high level.

Nwaneri in 25/26

Appearances

10

Minutes

427′

Goals

1

Assists

0

Goal Involvements per Match

0.1

Minutes per Goal Involvement

427′

All Stats via Transfermarkt

For example, the often “unplayable” dynamo, as dubbed by Jack Wilshere, scored nine goals and provided two assists in 37 appearances, totalling 1378 minutes.

That means the teen phenom averaged a goal involvement every 3.36 games, or, more crucially, one every 125.27 minutes, which helps justify Joe Cole’s claim that “he’s the most exciting footballer in England and maybe Europe.”

This highlights another trait both players share: a desire to get the ball forward and either take a shot themselves or create a chance for their teammates at every opportunity.

In other words, while someone like Odegaard might be happier to keep hold of the ball and carefully work an angle, the two Englishmen are more explosive, more direct.

Ultimately, with all that in mind, so long as he starts to get more game time, then one analyst’s claim that “Ethan Nwaneri will be Arsenal’s version of Phil Foden” seems like an entirely reasonable one.

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