Has Arteta just revealed that Arsenal won’t buy a striker in January?

Jacque Talbot

26 Dec 2022 15:12 GMT
3 min read

Mikel Arteta has backed Eddie Nketiah and insisted that the striker is growing ‘every single day’ following the lengthy injury Gabriel Jesus endured at the World Cup.

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Jesus is expected to be out of action for up to three months, meaning that he is likely to miss all of Arsenal's fixtures up until the end of February or the start of March.

Consequently, the Gunners will be missing a man up-front ahead of the January transfer window.

But Arteta may have given his biggest indication yet that the club might not splash the cash in the winter window and instead keep their faith in Nketiah, who is the only senior recognised striker within the club’s squad.

The 23-year-old scored five goals in seven appearances at the end of last season before he earned a fresh deal with the side in north London - but he is yet to net once in the league this season, coming off the bench 12 times so far this campaign.

Arteta full of praise for Nketiah

He has scored in the League Cup and the Europa League, however - and Arteta believes that he can go on and prove his worth.

"I have more faith in him every single day because we see every day what he brings to the team, how he is as a human, how he's developing as a player," the Spanish boss said in the pre-match press conference.

© ProShots - Eddie Nketiah earned a new deal last season

"I’ve more faith in Eddie Nketiah every single day because we see every day what he brings to the team, what he is as a human being, the way he is developing as a player”.

“He is ready, that is why he signed his contract - he is a key player in our squad”.

"We already got some great response last year when we needed him. He plays really well with the team. He's ready - that's why he signed that contract. He's a key player in our squad and he's going to have chances to play," the Arsenal manager added.

Jesus was instrumental in Arsenal's early season upsurge, with them sitting top of the Premier League table - so it will be a huge ask for Nketiah to fill the boots of the injured Brazilian.