Arteta could unleash 21-year-old with ‘incredible potential’ for Arsenal v Watford – TBR View

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Arsenal are in great form going into Sunday’s Premier League encounter with Watford at the Emirates Stadium.

Mikel Arteta’s Gunners will hope to make it three league wins in a row and ten consecutive games unbeaten in all competitions.

In addition, the game will mark the 100th under Arteta’s watch and could further underline the progress Arsenal have been making.

Aside from Granit Xhaka’s long-term knee problem, Gunners have been relatively lucky on the injury front thus far.

However, Kieran Tierney has had some problems due to a bruised ankle he sustained in the draw with Crystal Palace last month.

The knock kept him out of the Premier League clashes with Aston Villa and Leicester as well as the Carabao Cup tie with Leeds.

Tierney has resumed training with the Arsenal first team, and Arteta was cautiously optimistic in his pre-match press conference.

“Kieran has been training the last two days, he is feeling much better so hopefully he will be available,” said the manager.

However, the sensible option for Arteta would be to give Tierney a little more rest on Sunday and reward Nuno Tavares’ impressive form with another start.

The £8million summer signing has thoroughly impressed for Arsenal at left-back, which gives Arteta a really positive selection headache.

And fans should be thrilled about the prospect of Tavares challenging Tierney for the left-back spot.

The Scotland international has always been one of Arsenal’s most consistent players.

However, overreliance on one player is never good as it can risk fatigue and injury.

In the past, an injury to Tierney was seen as a disaster, but that’s no longer the case now.

All the best teams have strong competition for places, and Tavares’ arrival has done just that at left-back.

Arsenal star is “full of power, full of speed”

Former Benfica youth coach Joao Tralhao is confident that the Portuguese prodigy can become much, much better.

“He has huge mental strength and I think that is so important in a league as demanding as the Premier League,” he told Goal.com.

“You need to be strong mentally and Nuno has a lot of mental skills.

“And in terms of talent, it’s easy to see for everyone. He has incredible potential.

“He is full of power, full of speed, can win duels with everyone, he can cross, assist, dribble, pass well with precision.

“Nuno has all the potential to become a complete full-back, so I am not surprised at how he has settled.”