The mood around Arsenal at the moment is a brilliant one.
Mikel Arteta’s side closed the gap on Liverpool atop the Premier League to just two points with their win over Newcastle United last weekend.
Then during the week, they picked up another three points in the Champions League thanks to a steady 2-0 win against Olympiacos.
This weekend brings a fresh challenge as Nuno Espírito Santo’s West Ham United make their way to the Emirates for a game that Arteta can win by boldly dropping Gabriel Martinelli.
Arteta's record against Nuno
This afternoon’s game against West Ham will be the eighth time Arteta has faced off against Nuno since becoming a head coach, and as things stand, the Spaniard has a good record against him.
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Of the seven games they’ve already managed, the Gunners’ boss has won four, lost two and drawn one.
Interestingly, all seven games have been in the league, with three against Wolverhampton Wanderers, one against Tottenham Hotspur, and three against Nottingham Forest.
24/25
Forest
0-0
24/25
Forest
3-0 (Arsenal)
23/24
Forest
2-1 (Arsenal)
21/22
Spurs
3-1 (Arsenal)
20/21
Wolves
2-1 (Wolves)
20/21
Wolves
2-1 (Wolves)
19/20
Wolves
2-0 (Arsenal)
The most recent match between the two managers was a 0-0 draw at the City Ground back in February – a result emblematic of the North Londoners’ title challenge fizzling out.
Unsurprisingly, given the record, the Spaniard’s side has a healthy goal difference against the former Sao Tome-born boss, scoring 12 goals across the seven games and only conceding six.
However, while Arteta has generally gotten the better of Nuno, it would be fair to say that their most notable meeting was a 2-1 Wolves win in February 2021, as both Bernd Leno and David Luiz managed to get themselves sent off.
The Brazilian was handed his marching orders for a foul in the penalty area, and the German for handling the ball outside of it.
Arteta will be hoping for an altogether more straightforward win this afternoon, and one way he can do that is by dropping Martinelli for another attacking star.
The Arsenal star Arteta should start in place of Martinelli
Now, it might seem harsh to drop Martinelli after he scored against Olympiacos during the week, but there are a few reasons why Arteta should do it anyway and start Eberechi Eze in his place.
The first is that, under Nuno, there is a very good chance that West Ham will come to the Emirates and sit back for most of the game, looking to hit the Gunners on the counterattack.
So, to deal with what will likely be a low block, Arteta needs to get as many technicians on the pitch as possible, meaning Eze’s intricate dribbling and ability to play a pinpoint pass will be far more useful than Martinelli’s speed.
This then leads to the second argument, which is that, should the North Londoners find themselves a goal or two up by some point in the second half, the East Londoners will be forced to come out of their shape and stretch the game.
At this point, the speed and directness of the Brazilian will be far more helpful to the manager, and therefore, he could come on for the Englishman.
Now the club have a proper squad and a strong bench, it makes sense for the Spaniard to pick his starting line-ups based on how games are likely to play out, to maximise the team’s effectiveness and ensure players have the chance to play in situations most favourable to their skill set.
Finally, the reason the former Crystal Palace “magician,” as dubbed by Micah Richards, couldn’t just start in the middle of the park is that, over the last two games, Martin Odegaard has shown a level fans haven’t seen for well over a year.
He helped change the game at St James’ Park and was the Man of the Match on Wednesday, so dropping him now would be illogical and potentially damaging.
Ultimately, Martinelli deserves to play more, but given the sort of game it’s likely to be this afternoon and the need to keep Odegaard in midfield, Arteta should start Eze on the left.