"Why is he not starting", "Arteta really doesn't like him" - Arsenal fans unhappy with star's exclusion from XI for Athletic Club UCL clash

Arsenal fans on X (formerly Twitter) believe Mikel Arteta does not like youngster Ethan Nwaneri. They claim that the Englishman should have started in the UEFA Champions League opener at Athletic Bilbao, but the manager has opted to bench him.

Arteta has stuck with the backline of Jurrien Timber, Cristhian Mosquera, Gabriel, and Riccardo Calafiori, with David Raya in goal. The midfield sees one change with Declan Rice coming in for the injured Martin Odegaard, while Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino keep their place in the team.

The attacking trio remains unchanged from the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday, as Eberechi Eze, Noni Madueke, and Viktor Gyokeres start once again. Arsenal fans were expecting to see Nwaneri making the team instead of the injured Odegaard and posted:

Arteta did hint at rotation this week for the UEFA Champions League clash, but has opted against it. He said in his press conference:

"It will depend on the availability of the squad and the form of the players. Unfortunately, we have a few players already out, so that is already limited in certain positions. But hopefully we’ve come to the point where the competition and the level of performance of the players is so high that we are able to do that very efficiently to win more football matches. That’s our objective."

Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz, Ben White, Bukayo Saka, and Martin Odegaard are out injured, while William Saliba has made the bench.

Arsenal excited about another Champions League season, says Mikel Arteta

Mikel Arteta has admitted that Arsenal are looking forward to starting their UEFA Champions League campaign against Athletic Bilbao. He beleives that it is a great stadium to play at and said:

"We’re excited to start again from scratch in a beautiful place, in a stadium that is going to generate something special. We’re looking forward to that and I’m very excited again to step by step build some momentum, and start to have some wins."

When asked if they can go one step beyond this season, he added:

"Yeah, like the rest of the teams, that have done the same [strengthen] and continue to do that and have won it on many occasions. That’s the aim in the beginning but we all know that it’s going to be a really long journey. The margins in this competition are super small and you have to be at your very best from day one to give yourself the best possible chance."

Arsenal lost to PSG in the semi-finals last season, and the Ligue 1 side went to win the competition for the first time in their history.

Edited by Sripad