Neal Maupay, who accused Arsenal players of lacking humility in June, was dropped by his manager for having an inflated ego on Sunday.

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Arsenal midfielder Matteo Guendouzi (2R) challenges Neal Maupay after the English Premier League football match on June 20, 2020. (Photo by Richard Heathcote / POOL / AFP)

The Daily Mail and The Telegraph report that Graham Potter left Neal Maupay out of his squad to face Tottenham Hotspur, even though it left him without a starting striker, to combat the 24-year-old’s ego problem.

The striker reportedly has attitude issues and an inflating sense of self-worth, becoming involved in a ‘heated incident’ with a colleague last week. Potter wanted to show him that no player is more important than the team.

The Telegraph add that Maupay was becoming “carried away with his own success”. Success is a relative term, in this case meaning five goals in his last 15 games – two from the penalty spot.

Unfortunately, this record of one goal every three games had blown the Frenchman’s ego up so large that Potter couldn’t fit it in the team anymore. Which is rather amusing, considering what Maupay said about Arsenal players last season.

“Some of their players need to learn what is humility,” said Maupay in June. “Arsenal players maybe need to learn humility sometimes. They were talking a lot.”

Maupay was referring to the Arsenal player reactions to him pushing Bernd Leno in mid-air and leaving the goalkeeper with a sprained ligament.

Matteo Guendouzi had become particularly incensed and spent the match baiting the forward, before a violent confrontation at full-time.

Fortunately, Emi Martinez stepped up and helped the side win a couple of trophies despite Leno’s injury. Now, the German goalkeeper is back and keeping clean sheets at Anfield and Old Trafford.

But we better not get carried away. We still have a long way to go to reach the point Maupay believes he’s already at.