MY ACCOUNT
Eddie Nketiah is a man in demand — both by his own boss and by clubs seeking his signature.
The Arsenal striker has struggled to become a firm fixture in Mikel Arteta’s side, raising the prospect of a departure from the Emirates Stadium this summer.
But he has fought his way back into contention in recent weeks and looks set to spearhead the Gunners’ attack against West Ham this afternoon.
Ahead of that match, we consider what comes next for Nketiah.
Back with a bang
As Arsenal beat Chelsea 4-2 at Stamford Bridge last week — a crucial win in the North Londoners’ bid for Champions League qualification — Nketiah bagged a brace.
Those two goals were the 22-year-old’s first since a Carabao Cup hat-trick against Sunderland in December.
Nketiah then earned a third successive start in the following fixture as the Gunners beat Manchester United 3-1.
He thought he had found the net again, only for it to be disallowed for offside — though a VAR intervention did at least hand his side a penalty for an incident in the build up.
Limited involvement
However, Nketiah has found regular minutes hard to come by.
This is only the second time he has ever started three successive Premier League games, after a run of four towards the end of the 2019-20 campaign.
The former England Under-21 international made his Premier League debut over four years ago but has a total of just 14 top flight starts to his name.
He will soon turn 23 but his career has yet to get going, so it is not hard to see why he might want a move elsewhere.
Mikel’s mistake
Arteta was frank with his comments about Nketiah following that victory against Chelsea, admitting that he had “missed something” with him.
He said: “If there is one player that I have been unfair with, I think it’s [Nketiah].
“He has given me every right to do something different, and if Eddie doesn’t play more, it’s my fault and because as a manager I missed something or I haven’t had the courage to play him more.
“Today he showed me more how wrong I was.”
Unfortunately, it looks as though Arteta’s apparent epiphany may have come too late.
Decision time
Nketiah revealed last week that he would not make a decision about his future until after this campaign concludes.
But he emphasised the importance of playing regular football — and despite seizing his opportunity in recent matches, that is unlikely to be something he gets enough of at Arsenal going forward.
After all, if the Gunners are to continue their solid progress under Arteta, they need to go into the market for a new striker or two during the off-season.
Should Nketiah depart when his current deal expires, the club would at least be entitled to compensation if he joins an English side given he is under 24 and came through their academy.
Where to next?
Should Nketiah fail to agree a surprise contract extension at Arsenal, there are sure to be plenty of interested parties.
Crystal Palace were linked with him last summer before signing Odsonne Edouard and then making Jean-Philippe Mateta’s loan move permanent in January, so the time for a Selhurst Park switch may have been and gone.
But it is another London club who may be at the front of the queue for his signature.
Brentford’s star striker Ivan Toney is being tipped to join the Gunners, meaning there could well be a vacancy with the Bees this summer.
A move to Thomas Frank’s side could give Nketiah the platform he so desperately desires to really kickstart his career.
