Even after Rio Ferdinand called him a flop Arsenal are not ready to sell him says Mikel Artera
Arsenal are flying high at the top of the Premier League table with Rio Ferdinand picking out a player Mikel Arteta should be thankful for.
Arsenal and Mikel Arteta addressed the squad depth in the summer that had been an issue in recent title races and yet it has been tried and tested players who have come to the fore in recent weeks.
Eberechi Eze stole the show against Tottenham with his stunning hat-trick, but the quality of the Gunners’ squad is proving to be the difference at the top of the Premier League table this season. Such has been the impressive start to the season payers like Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka have been labelled “expendable”. Arteta might not quite be ready to offload two of his best players just yet, but the point is a valid one. Other players are now stepping up and making a difference.
Rio Ferdinand picks out unsung hero of Arsenal
One of those who, despite only featuring in 910 minutes worth of action, has five goals and five assists already this season with Rio Ferdinand going out of his way to hail the impact that Leandro Trossard has made at the Emirates after looking like he was heading for the exit door in the summer.
“The biggest thing we’ve got here is just the depth is on show,” Ferdinand noted on his YouTube channel when discussing Arsenal’s current form. “Trossard has been ridiculous. He doesn’t get the love he deserves from Arsenal fans because his goal contributions since he signed, only Saka has got more. Important goals he scores, whether it be an equaliser or a late winner he’s just input has been a joke. He needs massive, massive props.”
Ferdinand is right, players like Eze and Saka will get most of the highlights, but the job that Trossard does either from the start or coming off the bench can’t be downplayed and Arsenal truly have a squad capable of winning the league as a result.
Mikel Arteta names star who he didn’t want to leave Arsenal
Given Arsenal’s injury issues since the start of the season, Trossard’s unerring ability to produce the goods has been invaluable to Mikel Arteta, who rubbished any ideas of letting the Belgian leave his squad via the club’s official website on Sunday: “Yeah, for me, no, because for me it was forbidden for him to leave. No chance. I know the player that he is, and surrounded with the players that we have, he’s a player that is going to make a difference for us.
“I fully agree, it was one of the best games, so aggressive with and without the ball, so effective, he could have scored another one or two goals, and he was involved in so many positive actions. So that’s what we need. As I said, I think individually, the players were excellent today.”
It is a typical story of better players arriving, more depth in the squad, leading to those who are already at the club improving. Trossard was already a good player, but now he has made Arteta’s decision harder in terms of who to leave out of the team when Noni Madueke returns to full fitness or when Odegaard is fit to start games too.
Trossard is the perfect team player, and an example to those who might not always be first pick, no wonder he is a manager’s dream.
