It’s December, and it is a period in which title fights get intense, and fixtures pile up. Mikel Arteta faces fresh selection confusion as Arsenal are all set to play Everton this Saturday. Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards believes Arteta will have trouble with the team selection ahead of Everton. He elaborated on how both Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke have been exceptional in that right-wing position. Richards claimed that Arteta’s decision to pick one for the Everton clash will be a difficult choice.
Arsenal’s selection debacle
“I feel Arsenal have a little bit of a conundrum because Madueke is playing really well and Saka is their best player,” Micah Richards said while talking on The Rest Is Football podcast. This competition for that right-wing spot did not grow out of nowhere. Earlier in the season, Saka unfortunately had a hamstring issue, consequently sidelining him for a few games. During that period, Madueke showed up and marginally proved why he was signed from Chelsea. He especially had a great night against Bayern Munich in the Champions League. In what was touted as Arsenal’s most challenging fixture this season, Madueke scored. And he scored an absolute screamer, which made headlines. As Richards rightly said, this is a common selection conundrum that managers face. Prefer the player who is in great touch, or prefer your best player in the team? Mikel Arteta will most likely prefer to move towards selecting Saka. But making use of Madueke’s great form will also be a tempting prospect for the Spaniard.
Saka this season for Arsenal
Bukayo Saka has always been Arsenal’s poster boy. This season has been no different for the 24-year-old. He has racked up match-winning performances week in, week out for Arsenal. With 7 goals and a couple of assists this season, he continues to build on a great season in North London. He has notably scored twice in the Champions League as well. While Madueke boasts great form and offers something fresh, Arteta’s decision for the Everton clash must be simple. He should go with his best weapon in attack, which is obviously Bukayo Saka. Even against Wolves last week, when Arsenal were struggling to get a goal, Bukayo Saka came up clutch and caused an own goal through his attacking corner kick. One would even call Saka a cheat code in this Arsenal superteam.
The Madueke issue
Despite Noni Madueke slowly getting a grip on this Arsenal system, his career in the club hasn’t started off in the best of ways. His move to Arsenal from Chelsea was not at all received well by the Arsenal faithful. The supporters came up with an online campaign, #NoToMadueke. This was because they believed the signing would be a waste of club funds because of how Bukayo Saka and Madueke occupy the same position, with the same player profile. Furthermore, Madueke wasn’t necessarily having a great season with Chelsea. That fueled the fire further amongst Arsenal fans who failed to accept Madueke as a reasonable signing.
The Everton clash
Arsenal will pay a visit to Merseyside to play Everton this Saturday. The Gunners are riding on some great form this season. They have racked up wins while rarely dropping points. Despite the great form, Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City are breathing down their neck. Manchester City are just two points off Arsenal and will go top of the table if they win against West Ham on Saturday, as they will play their fixture before Arsenal play Everton.
Conclusion
As the title race heats up between Manchester City and Arteta’s Arsenal, the latter will have to make a decision between Madueke and Saka for the game against Everton. Irrespective of who plays, it is extremely crucial that the Gunners get the three points to stay in the title fight.
As featured on GoonerNews.com
