Mikel Arteta drops hint over whether Eberechi Eze will start Liverpool vs Arsenal

Eberechi Eze could make his Arsenal debut against Liverpool (Photo: Getty)

Mikel Arteta has been urged to start Eberechi Eze when Arsenal take on Liverpool in Sunday’s huge Premier League clash.

And the Gunners boss has suggested that could happen having been impressed by the £67.5million signing from Crystal Palace in training this week.

Eze was unveiled as an Arsenal player ahead of the 5-0 thrashing of Leeds last weekend and is fully fit and ready to play at Anfield in what could be an early title-deciding game.

The same cannot be said for Martin Odegaard who injured his shoulder against Leeds and while not ruled out of the Liverpool clash, Arteta has revealed his captain has not yet returned to training.

With Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz also sidelined, attacking midfielder Eze could well be thrown straight into the deep end in spite of the magnitude of this match.

‘Eberechi Eze should start this game and he’s a top player,’ Arsenal hero Paul Merson told Sportskeeda.

‘Sometimes, when Liverpool go attack, attack, attack, it can be relentless for their opponents. That’s where you need players like Eze to keep hold of the ball. So if they play like they did at Old Trafford, this game will be over by half-time!’

Martin Odegaard could miss the bug clash at Anfield (Photo: Getty)

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Arteta remained coy on whether he would start but had nothing but good things to say aboutthe England international.

‘Really impressed with him. I heard a lot of things about him. I spoke to a lot of people about him,’ the manager said of Eze.

‘Really bright. Very special energy, a special aura around him. Really willing, he’s already gathering a lot of information, the things that we want to see on that pitch.

Either Eze or Ethan Nwaneri will replace Odegaard if he is not passed fit in time (Photo: Getty)

‘But especially make sure that he has the freedom and the capacity to express his quality, which is the reason why we brought him here.

‘We have options in that position, and that’s a good thing that we have this year. So let’s see, as I said, another day. And I’m not going to give you any clues, obviously.

‘We have a lot of players now that can play in different positions, and they can fulfil gaps when we have them. And looking at the start of the season that we already had with injuries, that’s going to be very necessary. So I’m very happy to have the ability to do that.’

If neither Eze nor Odegaard start, Ethan Nwaneri will almost certainly be given the nod, with Noni Madueke on the right replacing Saka and one of Leandro Trossard or Gabriel Martinelli on the left.

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Comments