Speaking on the Wrighty’s House podcast, Ian Wright given his view on Emile Smith-Rowe at Arsenal, while he has also praised Mikel Arteta for the way he has brought the youngster into the first-team.
To say that the 20-year-old has been impressive since coming into the fold would be something of an understatement, he’s earned all sorts of plaudits from pundits, and he looks to be the real deal.
Wright said that he had been worried about Smith-Rowe’s future, claiming that he could have ended up being another Serge Gnabry, but he went on to praise Arteta for bringing him in at exactly the right time, handling him perfectly
“For me Emile Smith-Rowe has paid his dues out there, waiting for his chance, he’s paid his dues.
“What Mikel has done now, the timing in which he has done it as well is absolutely perfect, because I think if Emile Smith-Rowe doesn’t get into this team at this stage and they carried on doing what they were doing with people not performing at the levels, be it Willian or Pepe, I think you lose him. You lose him.
“You know, especially with January coming, he’s starting to think, and then we’ve got a Serge Gnabry on our hands.”
Arteta has done the right thing bringing Smith-Rowe in and if he keeps up this level of performance he will be here to stay.
The last thing Arsenal need is another Serge Gnabry. They must be kicking themselves every single day when they see the player he has developed into at Bayern Munich, but luckily, they have the chance to right these wrongs with Smith-Rowe.
Wright is spot on, Arteta has bided his time and put Smith-Rowe in when the correct opportunity arose, and now he’s reaping the rewards.
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