Joe Cole has compared Ethan Nwaneri to Lionel Messi following Arsenal’s 2-0 win over Leicester City. The 17-year-old midfielder played a crucial role in the Gunners’ victory at the King Power Stadium on Saturday afternoon, pocketing three crucial points in the Premier League title race.
Eager to find a breakthrough, Mikel Arteta brought off Raheem Sterling for Mikel Merino. The 28-year-old midfielder, who joined Arsenal from Real Sociedad in the summer, operated as a makeshift striker – and it didn’t take him long to make his mark.
Shortly after coming on, Merino fired the North Londoners ahead with an excellent header. A few moments later, the Spain international doubled Arsenal’s lead after latching onto another cross, this time stroking the ball past Mads Hermansen.
The Gunners are now just four points behind Liverpool, who have a game in hand, in the title race thanks to Nwaneri’s contribution. Speaking on TNT Sports after the game, Cole heaped tremendous praise on the teenage sensation.
“You can’t mark him because he can go both ways,” said the Chelsea hero. “These little touches he produces in and around the box, I don’t even want to say it but it’s like Messi. I’ve said it.
“I’m not trying to put any more pressure on the kid’s shoulders, even though I’m sure he’d deal with it, but the touches he makes as he receives the ball off the back foot, entices the defender and the touch off the top of the toe to put them off balance… He plays with such confidence and he’s a beautiful player. Arsenal and Mikel Arteta have to protect him.”
Martin Keown added: “It’s almost like Saka. It’s a huge leg-up for the club. You lose Saka and you’ve almost got his twin out there. This young man, I thought he was immense. He’s so confident and he steps into the ball and he’s aggressive when he travels with it.
“He looks so assured for such a young man. His decision-making is different class. His skillset, the pace, he’s assured in possession, he’s confident, he’s determined, hits it off his left foot, hits it off his right just as well and it’s all there. Boy, do we need him.”
Speaking to reporters at the King Power Stadium after the game, Arteta was quizzed on Cole’s comments. The Arsenal boss said: “Well, what he’s showing basically, that’s him. Obviously, his age is always something that puts a question mark on how we have to deal with him. But every sign that he’s given us is, ‘Let me go for it, let me go, let me go, let me go.’
“When a player is giving you all those signs, you should not stop it. You have to play with that freedom, with that creativity, with that confidence that he’s playing at the minute, and the players around him believe in him. So let him go because he’s a massive threat, massive talent and he deserves to play.”
Arteta added: “Every time he was on the ball he made things happen. You could see that he had another level of threat than the rest of the team and he continued with that in the second half with two great actions and after that he put the ball on the plate for Mikel to score the header.”
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- Source: NEWHD MEDIA
