Tim Sherwood says Mikel Arteta is a ‘very clever’ manager and it was backed up by his call to drop Eddie Nketiah for Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Leicester City on Saturday.
The former Tottenham manager added that Arteta ‘found a solution’ and the current Premier League leaders have to think ‘onwards and upwards’ now.
It was Leandro Trossard who played up front instead of Nketiah, with the January signing scoring a belting goal, before VAR chalked it off.
But Gabriel Martinelli, who came off the bench to score at Aston Villa last week, scored the only goal of the game to boost his own confidence once again.
These are just some of the big calls Arteta has had to make as the walls close in on the north London club and their quest to win the title.
Sherwood has been there before, when he was captain of Blackburn Rovers, and he was full of praise for Arteta for his recent bold call, as he told Premier League Productions (27/02/23 at 2:50 pm).
“He made another change at the weekend,” said Sherwood about the £159k-a-week manager. “He left out Eddie (Nketiah), he brought Trossard in as a false nine, it worked for them, in the end.
“They found a solution. He is a very clever manager. Onwards and upwards, for me, (for Arsenal). Take each game as it comes.”
ANY CHANGES FOR EVERTON?
The Europa League will return next week, so will Arteta continue to ring the changes for their two Premier League games this week? – Everton and Bournemouth.
On paper, those two are fighting relegation, so the points should be put on the board, but after losing to Sean Dyche in his first game in charge, such risks aren’t going to be taken.
So, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Arteta does remain unchanged for Everton’s visit and then assesses the situation from there.
