Arsenal legend Ian Wright has heaped praise on a £100,000-per-week star, insisting that he is just "meant" to play under Mikel Arteta.
The Gunners have two blockbuster encounters coming right after this international break, with both Tottenham and Man City awaiting Arsenal after their disappointing 1-1 draw against Brighton at the Emirates Stadium.
Joao Pedro's strike for the Seagulls cancelled out Kai Havertz's expertly taken lobbed finish over Bart Verbruggen in the first half, resulting in Arsenal's first dropped points of the new Premier League campaign, so it is imperative that Arteta's side get back to winning ways immediately.
City have won each of their opening three league matches in comfortable fashion, and it will take a near-perfect season from Arsenal to stop Pep Guardiola from making it five-consecutive Premier League title wins.
Arsenal's next five Premier League games |
Date |
---|---|
Tottenham (away) |
September 15 |
Man City (away) |
September 22 |
Leicester City (home) |
September 28 |
Southampton (home) |
October 5 |
Bournemouth (away) |
October 19 |
They could hardly ask for tougher tests than Spurs and the Sky Blues up next, and Arsenal are also set to be without key players for their trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Mikel Merino has been sidelined for nearly two months after fracturing his shoulder in training, while Declan Rice's sending off against Brighton means their star midfielder will miss the north London derby through suspension.
A silver lining for Arsenal is the potential debut of headline-grabbing summer deadline day signing Raheem Sterling, who wasn't registered in time to play a part against Brighton last weekend.
Arteta has explained to the press that Arsenal are preparing for Sterling his imminent first Gunners appearance, as the England international looks to get up to speed tactically and physically.
said Arteta on Sterling.
Sterling arrives to hand Arteta a proven back-up to Bukayo Saka who can also play further forward, and it is believed they're only paying £100,000-per-week of the 29-year-old's sky-high Chelsea salary over the course of his loan move.
said Wright.