Marseille boss says he needs ‘way more’ from Arsenal loanee

Ethan Nwaneri was an unused substitute for Marseille against Nice on Sunday, with manager Habib Beye criticising the Arsenal loanee’s application in training.

Ethan Nwaneri was once again named on the bench for Marseille over the weekend, his 10th consecutive game not in the starting lineup under new manager Habib Beye.

Nwaneri is yet to start a single match under the Senegalese coach, and that doesn’t seem likely to change based on Beye’s pre-match comments on Sunday.

“He’s a quality player, but he has to give us way more in his day-to-day commitment,” Beye said (via GFFN). “Other players gave way more.”

Things are not going well for Marseille at the moment, as they’ve slipped out of the Champions League qualification places and down into sixth, which would only earn them a Europa Conference League qualifying play-off next season.

With AS Monaco just two points behind them in seventh, Marseille appear more likely to drop further down the table than to regain a top-four spot in their final three matches.

The top three in France earn automatic qualification for the Champions League’s League Phase, whilst fourth earns a Champions League qualifier.

Yet in spite of Marseille’s struggles, or perhaps because they’re so desperate for results, Nwaneri has had to settle for cameo appearances in recent weeks.

Whether this turns out to be a bad loan for Nwaneri’s career remains to be seen.

If he takes the hardship and criticism on board and uses it as motivation, it could turn out to be a really positive learning experience. If not, it’s a waste of five months of his career.

• Former Gunner makes appearance for National League side
  Arsenal academy product Seb Ferdinand made an appearance for Hornchurch FC in midweek, after leaving the Gunners in the summer.
• Arsenal track winger with 13 g/a in 14 games
  Arsenal are tracking RB Leipzig winger Antonio Nusa, but they may struggle to complete the potential signing in January, according to a report.
• Double Arsenal injury update pre-Hull City clash
  Mikel Arteta has provided injury updates on Ezri Konsa and Bukayo Saka, ahead of Arsenal’s match against Hull City on Saturday.
• Arsenal only lost Max Dowman appeal by 1 vote
  New reports have now revealed that Max Dowman only lost his red-card appeal by the narrow margin of a 2-1 vote.
• Ex-Gunner reflects on Arsenal spell ahead of Emirates return with Hull
  Hull City’s Brooke Norton-Cuffy has reflected positively on his time with Arsenal, but he’ll be playing to win with his new side on Saturday.