‘On the bench whispering’… Mikel Arteta says Arsenal’s players wanted him to bring on ‘special’ player today 

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Mikel Arteta has admitted that he heard some of Arsenal’s players ‘whispering’ to bring Ethan Nwaneri off the bench today.

The Arsenal youngster got 13 minutes under his belt on Sunday as he replaced Gabriel Martinelli in the 77th minute.

Arteta’s men had the game well and truly wrapped up by this point as they thrashed West Ham 6-0 in east London.

It was Ethan Nwaneri’s first appearance for the Gunners since making history at Brentford last season.

Of course, the talented midfielder became the youngster-ever player to feature in the Premier League last term.

And Arteta has admitted that Arsenal’s players wanted him to bring the 16-year-old off the bench today.

Arsenal’s players wanted Arteta to bring Nwaneri on vs West Ham

Speaking to the media after today’s emphatic win at West Ham, Arteta admitted he heard some of Arsenal’s players saying they wanted Nwaneri to come off the bench.

He said: “There is something you have to earn in your team and that’s the trust of your teammates.

“I had players on the bench whispering to bring him [Nwaneri] in which is nice.” as quoted by Football.London.

Nwaneri is highly-rated at Arsenal and Arteta was presented with a decent opportunity to hand the youngster some minutes today. 

The teenager was heavily involved after coming off the bench and looked bright.

Former Arsenal skipper Granit Xhaka has already lauded Nwaneri as a ‘special’ talent and he looks set to have a bright future ahead of him. 

It’s quite surprising that Nwaneri was yet to make another appearance for the first team since making history back in September 2022.

But with plenty of competition for a place in Arsenal’s side, it should only benefit Nwaneri being around the first-team setup for the time being.