Pundit suggests he didn’t expect Arteta’s decision on 23-year-old Arsenal player at Chelsea

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Craig Burley has suggested that he was a little surprised to see Emile Smith Rowe come on for Arsenal before Leandro Trossard during the draw at Chelsea.

Burley was speaking to ESPN after Mikel Arteta’s men produced a brilliant late comeback to earn a point from their trip to Stamford Bridge.

Emile Smith Rowe got a big opportunity in the game. Of course, Stamford Bridge is a stadium he has happy memories of. The 23-year-old came on midway through the second-half as the Gunners desperately searched for a way back into the fixture.

However, it was the next batch of substitutions which had a bigger impact on the game. Leandro Trossard replaced Gabriel Martinelli 10 minutes after Smith Rowe had come on. And it was the Belgian who bagged the Arsenal equaliser.

Emile Smith Rowe coming on before Leandro Trossard a surprise

Speaking to ESPN, Kieran Gibbs suggested that Trossard is almost Arsenal’s secret weapon. But the 28-year-old has been able to make an impact on a number of occasions.

And with that, Craig Burley claimed that he was slightly perplexed to see Smith Rowe come on first.

“But really until the Sanchez mistake, I didn’t think Arsenal were going to get back in the game. A little surprising that Emile Smith Rowe comes on before Trossard,” he told ESPN.

“Zinchenko was off at half-time. I haven’t heard if it was an injury or not. But certainly, okay on the ball. Defensively, Zinchenko, pretty poor.”

Arsenal youngster cannot afford to let opportunities pass him by

It does appear that Smith Rowe is going to have to make something happen for himself. As things stand, he does not appear to be a key player in Mikel Arteta’s plans. He is still awaiting his first league start since the 2021/22 season ended.

He definitely has the talent to do it. Smith Rowe was one of the players who actually gave Arsenal fans something to smile about during the trickier periods of Arteta’s tenure.

But Arsenal are on another level now. And with players such as Trossard, Kai Havertz and Fabio Vieira also in the ranks, it is going to be tough for Smith Rowe to win his place back.

It certainly does not help when Trossard makes such an important contribution to put Arsenal back on level terms.