Mikel Arteta now really trusts 24-year-old Arsenal man to deliver his on-field instructions

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta really trusts forward Eddie Nketiah and has given the 24-year-old more responsibility.

A report from The Athletic has shared more details about the pair’s relationship.

There’s been plenty of noise around Eddie Nketiah for some time due to his fantastic goal-scoring exploits while coming through the ranks.

The striker scored 15 goals in 16 Under-18 appearances before being promoted to the Uner-21 side.

At that level, he recorded 35 goal contributions in 40 matches before moving on loan to Leeds United.

For his first move away from the club to be to one of the biggest teams in the Championship says a lot about the expectation on him.

Even though his time at Elland Road didn’t quite go to plan, Mikel Arteta immediately brought him into the senior squad.

Arteta has shown he trusts Nketiah even more this season as he gave him the captain’s armband for the Emirates Cup in pre-season.

In the absence of Gabriel Jesus, he’s stepped up in the Premier League so far this season, scoring twice and winning the decisive penalty against Crystal Palace.

His early season form has earned him his first England call-up and he’ll be hoping to win his first cap against Scotland this evening.

Arteta now trusts Nketiah more and more

The report from The Athletic states that Arteta considers the 24-year-old a ‘hard worker’ within the squad.

They also believe that the Spanish coach sees Nketiah as a ‘reliable on-pitch communicator’ meaning he can deliver important messages to his teammates.

While that occasionally means being the player who comes off the bench to deliver Arteta’s tactical instructions, Nketiah will hope his manager trusts him to lead from the front when starting too.

After Folarin Balogun thrived on loan last season, there would have been people who wondered whether Nketiah would be sacrificed for the American international.

Instead, the 22-year-old was sold to Monaco and Nketiah has already paid back that trust in his ability.

He’s a popular member of the squad and fully deserves to make his England debut today.

It would be an appropriate reward for the 24-year-old who has had to be patient to prove he can be a top-level centre-forward.