Was letting Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe go a mistake? | OneFootball

In the last three games he’s been available for Fulham, Emile Smith Rowe hasn’t started. Similarly, Eddie Nketiah hasn’t started in the last eight fixtures he’s been available for Crystal Palace.

You might be wondering why I’m highlighting the game time of these two ex-Gunners. Well, the duo seem to have settled as bench options for Palace and Fulham.

One might ask, why did they leave Arsenal in the first place?

Mikel Arteta admitted not long ago that they entered this season with one of the thinnest squads.

Looking at Smith Rowe or Nketiah, I’ve often thought they would have been useful on our bench many times this season. Given how we really needed and still need more attacking talent, it feels dire. Nketiah would have been better off being a sub at Arsenal.

(Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

You can’t convince me that while Martin Odegaard was out injured for around six weeks, Emile Smith Rowe wouldn’t have been given a chance to play. And how many times have Arsenal needed a game-changing substitute in attack to win the game but failed because they didn’t have an out-and-out striker like Eddie Nketiah to bring on board?

The grass is not always greener on the other side.

Would you rather be a bench option at a club like Arsenal, fighting for the league and Champions League, or go to a club that only yearns to compete in the Premier League?

Hopefully, this winter, Arsenal will be bold enough to finally replace Nketiah and Smith Rowe. After letting them go, the club certainly didn’t adequately replace them. Mikel Merino and Raheem Sterling just don’t offer what the duo would on a good day.

That said, hopefully, Nketiah and Smith Rowe step up in their new clubs. We need them to shine. In fact, it would be comforting for us to be linked with their services in the near future.

Daniel O

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