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Theo Walcott shares the mistake he feels Mikel Arteta has already made with Ethan Nwaneri at Arsenal
Ethan Nwaneri is beginning to blossom at Arsenal.
The 17-year-old netted his first Premier League goal on Saturday as Arsenal recorded a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, a result which puts the Gunners in fourth place.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 4 |  ArsenalArsenal | 12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 22 |
It was the Arsenal No.53’s fourth goal of the 2024/25 campaign – having already scored three goals in just two Carabao Cup outings this season.
Mikel Arteta seems to be handling Ethan Nwaneri well at Arsenal – although Theo Walcott has now highlighted a mistake the Spaniard made with the teenager.
Theo Walcott thinks Mikel Arteta missed a golden opportunity to give Ethan Nwaneri more minutes
Speaking on for Monday Night Football alongside Jamie Carragher, the man who made 397 appearances for Arsenal – scoring 108 goals – said he feels the England U19 international deserved to play more while Martin Odegaard was out injured for almost two months.
Walcott said: “He’s had a lot more experience playing at the highest level (than Walcott did at that age].
“He’s been around these players consistently, that’s why I just wanted to see a little bit more of him when Odegaard was out. He’s different and Arsenal needed something different to get them through that patch without Odegaard. Odegaard is a magician and he (Nwaneri) is not far off it.”
It speaks volumes that Walcott feels Nwaneri is “not far” away from the level of the Norway international – but that simply goes to show just how talented the Hale End graduate really is.
Per Mertesacker also likened Nwaneri to Odegaard – so it seems to be a general feeling amongst those close to Arsenal.
Gabriel Jesus even compared Nwaneri to Phil Foden too – while these comments are all designed to praise the Londoner, Arsenal must be careful when it comes to overhyping the teenager.
Mikel Arteta should have trusted the Arsenal No.53
While we understand the importance of slowly bedding young talents in – and not expecting too much too soon – Nwaneri is exceptionally talented, and Walcott is right.
Arteta showed a lack of faith in the attacking midfielder while Odegaard was injured, opting to make significant tactical adjustments with the introduction of a rigid 4-4-2 formation, instead of simply putting Nwaneri where the Norwegian usually operates in the preferred 4-3-3 system.
The Arsenal No.53 obviously has a long way to go until he becomes as good as Odegaard, but crucially, he is an attacking midfielder who likes to cut inside from the right onto his stronger left foot, which is exactly how the Arsenal No.8 operates.
Therefore, it does feel like a bit of a missed opportunity from Arteta – although as long as Nwaneri continues to receive minutes, his development should continue nicely.