Myles Lewis-Skelly was given a rare first Arsenal start in midfield in a Premier League game on Saturday as the Gunners blew away Fulham in a London derby clash to establish a six-point lead over Manchester City in the title race.
The Gunners had an April to forget, during which they won just two games and surrendered a nine-point lead at the summit, allowing their rivals, City, the advantage to retake the lead after playing the same number of games.
The pressure was tense around the Emirates after what was a brilliant season turned into a nightmare in the span of a month, with a Carabao Cup final loss and Emirates FA Cup elimination all packed in there.
The only reasons for optimism during the month were that the title race could yet be in their hands, given the nature of games remaining for the two teams, as well as their continued fight to win their first Champions League title.
Despite the disappointment of April, Arsenal managed to edge out Sporting CP in a 1-0 aggregate scoreline in the quarter-finals and avoided defeat against Atlético Madrid in the semi-final first leg in Spain, which ended in a 1-1 draw.
As the chapter closed on such a forgettable month, it appears that things are starting to look good for Mikel Arteta’s team again after staging one of their best league performances of the season before half-time against the Cottagers, and Man City dropping points at Everton on Monday night.
Nevertheless, the biggest talking point around the club in the wake of Saturday’s win was the performance of Myles Lewis-Skelly, which has also had fans and pundits questioning the manager as to why the decision hadn’t come sooner, especially with Martin Zubimendi struggling.
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s Midfield Debut
The youngster was primarily a midfielder but was deployed at left-back ahead of his transition into the first team. Last season, he starred at left-back while Riccardo Calafiori was injured and made himself a mainstay, even earning a senior call-up to the England squad.
Unfortunately, the availability of the Italian, coupled with the signing of Piero Hincapie, has limited his involvement this season, especially in Premier League and UEFA Champions League games.
Earlier in the season, Myles Lewis-Skelly was set to start in Arsenal’s midfield during an Emirates FA Cup match at home to Wigan Athletic, but an injury to Calafiori before kickoff forced him back to the left-back position, with Bukayo Saka taking the midfield role.
But against Fulham on Saturday, he finally got his long-awaited audition when he started in place of Martin Zubimendi, who was rested ahead of the visit of Atlético in mid-week, and he took it with aplomb.
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s Game in Numbers vs. Fulham
Myles Lewis-Skelly’s performance against Fulham has earned him a lot of praise from fans and pundits. He completed 64 of 66 pass attempts, won seven duels and six recoveries, made four final-third entries, created one chance, and won four fouls.
He was absolutely unplayable for the Fulham midfield, as the likes of Sasa Lukic and Harrison Reed struggled to stay close to him all game.
Calls for Myles Lewis-Skelly to Start vs. Atlético Madrid
Thierry Henry has made a bold claim that Mikel Arteta should start the young sensation against Atlético Madrid in the Champions League semi-final second leg on Tuesday night, as Arsenal targets history.
Although he has fallen behind Riccardo Calafiori and Piero Hincapie in the left-back position, he boasts more experience at this stage than the two, having played in both legs of the semi-finals against PSG last season.
Myles Lewis-Skelly was also Arsenal’s starting defender in the 4-0 victory over Los Colchoneros in the league phase back in October; however, as the Spaniard claims, he knows when it is best to call on the player.
Mikel Arteta Reassures He Makes Best Decisions
Responding to questions on why Myles in midfield didn’t come sooner, Arteta responded: “Because, erm… probably I don’t have a clue! Maybe I should have done it earlier, I don’t know. It was a big risk; if we lost the game, what would have happened?”
The Arsenal boss pointed out the potential for criticism if the decision had backfired, and maintains he’ll continue to make the best decisions regarding not just the England international, but every member of the squad.
Arsenal Injury Update Ahead of Atléti Clash
Mikel Arteta confirmed the return of Martin Ødegaard and Kai Havertz; the captain missed the weekend game, while the latter has not featured after coming off in the 1-0 win over Newcastle United last month.
Bukayo Saka also returned to training to kill off suspicion of a possible injury after he was taken off at halftime against Fulham, signaling his potential inclusion in the starting XI.
Arsenal are looking to reach only their second-ever Champions League final and need a win to do so. In that case, they will face the winner of the tie between Bayern Munich and PSG in Budapest later this month.
Kehinde-Hassan Afolabi
