The Gunners are already five points adrift of pacesetters Manchester City following last Sunday’s 2-2 draw against Liverpool and cannot afford any more slip-ups against Newcastle and Chelsea before the international break.
Injuries to the likes of skipper Martin Odegaard have had a major impact on recent performances with former Arsenal midfielder Petit fearing the Norwegian’s absence is having a detrimental impact on Declan Rice.
Arsenal did add Mikel Merino to their ranks in the summer transfer window but Petit hasn’t been overly impressed by the Spain international thus far and fears Arteta will ultimately regret parting company with Emile Smith Rowe who joined Fulham after being deemed surplus to requirements.
Mikel Arteta will want midfielders who can control the tempo of the game, Declan Rice can’t do this at the moment. I understand the criticism towards Rice from the fans. But, I think Rice has gotten worse since Martin Odegaard had his injury. Rice needs Odegaard as an option to pass forward to.
‘Arsenal need an attacking midfielder, it’s the position they’re missing at the moment,’ Petit told Jeffbet.
‘When it’s Rice, Mikel Merino and Leandro Trossard in the midfield, there is no creativity there.
‘Because Kai Havertz roams about the pitch, there is not a consistent pass to the striker. A solution could have been Emile Smith Rowe, but he’s gone to Fulham.
‘I watched the game with William Gallas, we agreed Arsenal have a quality squad but not many quality players. When the spine gets injured, the team struggles.
‘If that happens to Manchester City or Liverpool, they don’t struggle. I think the new Arsenal signings have looked average, but I won’t point any fingers.’
The Gunners are in Carabao Cup action this evening against Preston and fans will be hoping to see Ethan Nwaneri given another chance to impress after the teenager scored twice in the previous round against Bolton.
;Preston is a perfect game to give minutes to Ethan Nwaneri, Lewis Miles-Skelly and other youngsters in the team,’ added Petit.
‘Mikel Arteta needs to rest the spine of the team. With the injuries against Liverpool, I’m very confident he will field a heavily-rotated side, especially with Newcastle coming up on the weekend.
‘This is Nwaneri’s time to show he’s the back up to Martin Odegaard, of course. Arsenal’s tradition is to bring youth into the starting XI, and they need these games to make that step.’
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