Mikel Arteta discusses surprise Arsenal omission; raves about Dani Ceballos

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has suggested to Bein Sports that Matteo Guendouzi due to being unimpressed with the Frenchman during their winter trip to Dubai.

The youngster was left out of Arteta’s 18-man squad for yesterday’s 4-0 win over Newcastle and the Spaniard hinted after the game that it wasn’t tactical.

It was the first time this season that Guendouzi hasn’t made the matchday squad and his omission came as a surprise.

Arteta told Bein Sports: “The reason is that players who, in my opinion, are training better, behaving better and are more applied to deliver on the pitch, what we want, are the players selected.”

The 20-year-old has made 29 appearances in all competitions this season and has largely been viewed as one of the Gunners’ better players.

Arteta’s latest decision sends a clear message to Guendouzi and he has perhaps suggested that Dani Ceballos should act as the benchmark when it comes to performing well in training.

The £51,000-a-week maestro played for the first time since November in the Premier League and the boss has been delighted with his progress.

Arteta told the Daily Star: “Dani Ceballos is a good example. He was injured and when he started to train I don’t think he was fit enough.

“He completely changed his behaviour and trained like an animal. I thought he was the best player on the pitch.”

Uncertainty

It looks like Guendouzi may have fallen foul of complacency to a certain extent.  The French performer must up his game, particularly now that Ceballos has roared back to fitness with a vengeance.

At 20, he will almost certainly earn another chance to shine but Arteta is obviously keen to send a clear message.

In recent years too many mediocre performances have been taken as acceptable at Arsenal. As a result, a shift in mentality to suggest that players must work hard each day is certainly not a bad thing.

Arsenal face Olympiacos in the Europa League this week and it will now be interesting to see if Guendouzi features in the squad.