"You can see that with his numbers" - Ian Wright explains why Leandro Trossard starts ahead of Gabriel Martinelli for Arsenal
Arsenal icon Ian Wright has praised Leandro Trossard, outlining why the Belgian is playing ahead of Gabriel Martinelli. Trossard's good run of form continued as he scored in the Gunners' Premier League clash against Manchester United, helping them seal a 1-0 win at Old Trafford on May 12.
Trossard made his sixth league start in a row and paid back Mikel Arteta's faith with a good finish from close range in the 20th minute to secure all three points for Arsenal.
The 29-year-old has been in sensational form this season, scoring 17 goals and providing two assists in 45 appearances across all competitions, helping the Gunners challenge for Premier League glory.
Wright reckons Trossard has become the club's best finisher, saying (via METRO):
"You saw the way and the manner in which he attacked that box. That’s his thing, finishing. I would be interested to see how many touches of his are one-touch finishes when he is coming in because he is crashing into the box."
He continued:
"He is coming with Wan-Bissaka, who I was surprised wasn’t tighter. But he’s coming in and getting ahead of somebody like that, who is very good at man-marking. I think he is our best finisher at Arsenal. You can see that with his numbers."
"This is why he is playing instead of Martinelli. We know Martinelli has the pace to hurt teams, but Trossard has that cuteness, that movement and finishing ability that is vital in games like this."
Martinelli has been decent for the north London outfit this season, registering eight goals and five assists in 43 appearances across all competitions. However, in comparison to Trossard, he has been nowhere as clinical - which explains why he hasn't started any of the Gunners' last nine league games.
"Always overlooked" - Ian Wright hails Arsenal attacker's defensive contributions following 1-0 win against Manchester United
In addition to his comments on Leandro Trossard, Ian Wright also lavished praise upon Bukayo Saka for his performance in Arsenal's 1-0 win against Manchester United.
Saka had an industrious outing during his 82 minutes on the pitch. The 22-year-old winger created three big chances and fired one shot on target with an accuracy of 100 percent. But his biggest contribution was arguably in his defense work as he won seven duels, made four recoveries, and two clearances.
From the aforementioned source, Wright stated:
"You look at Saka’s numbers, not just his goals and assists but his defensive work, which is always overlooked. He’s a very intelligent player when it comes to helping the team. He’s got such a level that it’s normalising very, very consistent play."
Saka limped off in the 82nd minute with a knock which will be a concern for the Emirates faithful. Arsenal will next be in action on Sunday, May 19 when they face Everton at home in the final gameweek of the season.