Anifowose Samson
This season has been nothing short of a roller coaster for Arsenal fans....TAP HERE TO READ THE FULL STORY..>>
Mikel Arteta’s side have been inconsistent on the pitch and incredibly unlucky with injuries off of it.
However, the last seven days might just have been the start of a good period for the side, with Mikel Merino stepping up in the absence of a recognised number nine on Saturday and then the former manager doing his successor a favour by taking two points off Liverpool on Wednesday.
mikel-merino-arsenal
With that said, the Gunners have a tough test against Graham Potter’s West Ham to get past this afternoon if they are to keep up the pressure on Arne Slot’s Reds, and to ensure they do, Arteta must unleash one of his new stars who’s been compared to the Hammers’ Mohammed Kudus.
Arsenal’s record against West Ham
Since their first meeting back in January 1909, when they were under the name Woolwich Arsenal, the Gunners have played West Ham 152 times across all competitions, winning 74, drawing 41 and losing 37.
However, while their overall record against the Hammers is pretty excellent, the North Londoners’ form against the Hammers over their last four encounters has been decidedly more mixed, with two wins, two losses and a draw.
Moreover, while their last two games against the East Londoners, which have both been away, have resulted in hefty wins for Arteta’s men, their last game at the Emirates was something of a disaster.
It was in late December 2023, and despite taking 30 shots to their six, having 74% of the possession and amassing an expected goals figure of 2.77 to their 1.42, the title challengers came away 2-0 losers, and it could have been even worse had David Raya not saved Saïd Benrahma’s 96th minute penalty.
So, it should be an exciting game this afternoon, and one of the players Arsenal have to be most aware of is undoubtedly Mohammed Kudus.
Still, the good news is Arteta already has his answer to the attacker, although he has to make sure he starts him.
Arsenal’s answer to Kudus
The unfortunate truth of the matter is that, thanks to the mountain of attacking injuries Arsenal have at the moment, there really aren’t many options for Arteta to choose from for the right wing, meaning it’s likely to be another start for the incredible Ethan Nwaneri, who also happens to be the team’s answer to Kudus.
Now, there are a number of reasons why this is the case, but perhaps the most significant is that he’s been likened to the Hammers star by FBref, which compares players in similar positions across Europe’s top five leagues, the Champions League and Europa League, then creates a list of the ten most comparable players for each one, and, in this instance, has concluded that the Ghanaian is the second most similar attacking midfielder or winger to the Englishman.
The best way to see where this comparison has come from is to look at the underlying metrics in which the pair rank closely, including, but not limited to, non-penalty expected goals plus assists, shots on target, passes into the penalty area, blocks, ball recoveries and more, all per 90.
| Nwaneri & Kudus | ||
|---|---|---|
| Statistics per 90 | Nwaneri | Kudus |
| Non-Penalty Expected G+As | 0.33 | 0.38 |
| Shots on Target | 3.07 | 2.99 |
| Passes into the Penalty Area | 0.95 | 1.09 |
| Blocks | 1.19 | 1.14 |
| Ball Recoveries | 4.52 | 4.89 |
| All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 PL Season | ||
All Stats via FBref for the 24/25 PL Season
On top of their statistical similarities, both players have shown themselves to be positionally versatile, as while the young Hale Ender is currently thriving off the right, he’s also able to play in midfield, attacking midfield, and even up-top, akin to the Irons ace.
With all that said, another reason Arteta must start the “unplayable” teenager, as dubbed by Jack Wilshere, is exactly that: he’s becoming the sort of player defenders do not want to play against.
For example, despite playing just 790 minutes of first-team football across 24 appearances, the Enfield-born phenom has scored seven goals and provided one assist, which comes out to an unreal average of a goal involvement every three games, or every 98.75 minutes.
Ultimately, Arsenal must win this game to keep the pressure on Liverpool, and for them to stand the best chance of doing so, the manager needs to keep Nwaneri in the starting lineup-.Read Full Details
