Mikel Arteta thinks £21m Arsenal player is ‘getting better and better’

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has praised Jakub Kiwior after the defender’s performance in the 3-1 win over Chelsea on Tuesday night.

The Gunners sparked a surprise when the starting lineups were released an hour before kickoff.

Rob Holding was benched, which maybe wasn’t a huge shock after his struggles against Manchester City last week.

Yet with William Saliba out of action, Arteta went with January signing Kiwior alongside Gabriel Magalhaes.

It’s not often you see two left-footed centre backs playing together but Arteta decided to go with it.

Kiwior joined Arsenal from Spezia for £21million in January but has had to be patient and wait for his chance.

The Poland international had made just two Premier League appearances totalling 14 minutes before starting against Chelsea.

Throwing him in to play against Chelsea was a gamble but Kiwior responded with a strong display.

Mikel Arteta hails Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior

Kiwior recorded three interceptions, four clearances, one blocked shot and one successful aerial duel against Chelsea.

The 23-year-old will be delighted with his first start and will be desperate for more with Saliba still out.

Arteta has now praised Kiwior, telling Football London that he felt the defender ‘looked fresh’ against Chelsea.

Arteta feels Kiwior is ‘getting better and better’ every single day, impressing in Arsenal training of late.

The Arsenal boss feels that Kiwior is also improving with the English language is starting to look really settled in North London.

Arteta added that it was a ‘big task’ against the Chelsea attack but Kiwior did ‘really well’ in a strong performance.

Kiwior came up against the likes of Raheem Sterling, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Noni Madueke, Kai Havertz and Mykhailo Mudryk.

The night didn’t seem to phase him though and Kiwior will now hope to land more starts before the summer.

“He looked ready, he looked fresh,” said Arteta. “He looked really determined, he’s been getting better and better every single day. Not only training but his interaction, his language, he is more settled and is a player that I really like which is why we signed him.”

“He’s got the potential at his age to be great and I think he had a big task against the players he had to face today and I think he did really well,” he added.