Leandro Trossard admits he’s shocked by how often Arteta’s picked him this season

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Arsenal new signing Leandro Trossard has admitted he’s played a lot more minutes for the club than he expected.

Trossard was speaking to the press, via Reuters, while away on international duty with Belgium.

He goes into the break in fantastic form, having broken into Arsenal’s starting line-up.

Signed as a versatile back-up to Arsenal’s regular front three, the injury to Gabriel Jesus presented him with an opportunity to start.

He quickly took Eddie Nketiah’s place in the side, and has gone to start five of Arsenal’s last six league games.

In that time, he’s also recorded six assists, including three in one half against Fulham.

Gabriel Jesus has now returned from injury, and earned his first start against Sporting in the Europa League.

However, Leandro Trossard could still be called upon to play plenty more minutes before Arsenal’s season is over.

The 28-year-old has proved he can offer something different to Arsenal’s other attackers.

Trossard surprised by Arsenal minutes since signing

Asked about his first few months at The Emirates, Trossard said: “I maybe didn’t expect to play that many minutes, but injuries helped me a bit.

“I’m however more than convinced of my own capabilities. I arrived in a great group, filled with great players.”

Trossard was brought in for £27m in January, but Ally McCoist has already said that deal looks like great value for money.

The Belgian has needed next to no time to adapt to his new surroundings, and has slotted into Mikel Arteta’s system perfectly.

With ten games to go, and Jesus’s fitness improving quickly, it will be interesting to see how many minutes Trossard ends up playing for Arsenal this season.

Arteta suddenly has a job on his hands trying to keep a number of key attackers happy during the run-in.

While the notion of his decisions being for the greater good may work during a title race, next season could be more tricky.

With Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard virtually impossible to drop, it leaves two positions left to fill.

Even before Arsenal potentially bring in any more signings, that could be a dilemma for the Spaniard to face in the near future.