Arteta ready to hand £60 million man a debut at Anfield | OneFootball

Mikel Arteta has no fears about selecting new signing Eberechi Eze for an Arsenal debut against Premier League title rivals Liverpool in the battle between last season’s top two sides.

Eze completed his £60m move from Crystal Palace in time to be paraded on the pitch before last weekend’s 5-0 home win over Leeds United.

Now the England international has had a chance to train with his new team-mates too, he is in line for a high-profile debut away to the defending Premier League champions.

Asked if he thought Eze will be in his squad and make an immediate impact at Anfield, Arteta replied: “Yes. I think he will go there and he’s played there many times. I think he’s the type of player that loves those scenarios and those moments.”

Whether or not Eze starts partly depends on the fitness of Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard, who has not trained all week due to a shoulder injury.

Either way, Arteta is predicting big things from his versatile forward. He added: “I think the moment he starts to play, we will see how the team will react and what connections will flourish from his interventions.

“I’m very confident as well. He’s played in the league for so many years. He knows the league inside and out and now we’re just adapting to his qualities and making sure that we put him in the right positions as often as possible.”

Elsewhere in the Arsenal camp, Arteta had some motivating words for one of last season’s standout players, Myles Lewis-Skelly.

The teenage Academy graduate came from nowhere to secure both a first-team starting role under Arteta and then and a senior England call-up too.

Italian international Riccardo Calafiori, however, has been used as a starter in their first two matches of the season with Lewis-Skelly coming on to help close games out as a substitute.

Arteta explained: “I always have conversations with players about what to expect, the reasons why they play or don’t play. Sometimes it’s because there’s another player doing really well, but Myles has been in contention in both games.

“I think he’s very, very consistent in the way he’s been. And when you don’t play, you have to fight to win that place back. That’s it.”