Even though Arsenal are bound to bring in another striker this summer, Eddie Nketiah will be oozing confidence when the new season gets underway.
The young striker wants to be an important part of a project, which was why he had seek to move on but Arsenal have done well to convince him to continue his adventure at the club.
For his performances in the later stages of last season, he has been rewarded with a bumper new contract that will see him remain at the club until the summer of 2027.
The 23-year-old was linked with a move away from the Emirates at the turn of the year having found chances hard to come by even when the first choice strikers were misfiring.
Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette could not deliver in the system employed by manager Mikel Arteta, leading to both leaving the club in the winter and summer respectively.
Eddie Nketiah, has been on the books at Arsenal having being released by Chelsea in 2015, and became a popular name amongst the Arsenal fans when he came off the bench in the 85th of a Carabao Cup match against Norwich City.
He scored 15 seconds after coming on to restore parity at 1-1 and went on to grab a brace and completed the comeback in extra time to seal a 2-1 Arsenal win.
He spent time on loan at Leeds United in the Championship and return to the club looking to establish himself as a regular but that will not happen with the presence of Aubameyang and Lacazette.
With both gone and a striker is expected to come in, Nketiah will be fine playing second fiddle to only one striker, knowing he will get his chances to convince the manager in the Europa League.
Nketiah has made 91 first team appearances for Arsenal, most of which has been a substitute. He has 23 goals for the club as well.
He will wear the No. 14 shirt next season, a number that bears a lot of importance for everyone attached to the club as it is the number used by Thierry Henry, whom many considers the greatest to ever grace the club.
Eddie Nketiah managed 10 goals last season for Arsenal, only Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe had more and with the club back in Europe, the striker will be afforded a lot of minutes to impress and even compete for league starts.
His form towards the end of last season shows he is a striker that well fits into the Mikel Arteta system and the manager will be glad to call on him if needed at any point of the season.
A new Arsenal is anticipated next season and it’s already getting busy with transfer business as players already joining while many others are still expected to follow suit.
Author: Kehinde Hassan Afolabi
