Ethan Nwaneri was an unused substitute for Marseille against FC Metz on Friday night, as his loan spell under new boss Habib Beye continues to underwhelm.
Arsenal loanee Ethan Nwaneri was an unused substitute in Marseille’s home win over FC Metz on Friday, and he still hasn’t started a game for the Ligue 1 side under new manager Habib Beye.
Beye took charge of Marseille ahead of their match against Stade Brestois on February 20th, but in eight matchday squads since then he’s failed to name Nwaneri in the starting lineup on a single occasion.
The closest Nwaneri has come to a start is when he was introduced in the 18th minute of Marseille’s Ligue 1 clash with Lille. The Arsenal midfielder scored his team’s only goal of the game, but he was substituted in the 75th minute after less than an hour of action.
Even before he was appointed, Beye’s relationship with Nwaneri was already off to a bad start.
Beye was previously managing Stade Rennais, and Nwaneri made a bad challenge on Rennes’ Glen Kamara in the 22nd minute of their Coupe de France tie.
Many believed it should have been a red card, and Kamara subsequently spent four games out injured, but Nwaneri was only shown a yellow.
The then-Rennes boss Beye was clearly unhappy, and he said afterwards: “Kamara was having a good game until this attack from Nwaneri.”
So perhaps there wasn’t much goodwill between player and coach upon Beye’s arrival at Marseille, and Nwaneri clearly hasn’t yet convinced his new manager that he deserves a starting spot.
The one consolation for Arsenal is that they structured the loan deal so that they’d earn more money from it if Nwaneri plays less. Given he’s made four starts in two-and-a-half months, the Gunners look set to profit financially, if nothing else.
- Arsenal braced for Premier League offers for 19yoArsenal believe Premier League clubs are set to join the race for Ethan Nwaneri, having already received an enquiry from Galatasaray and a bid from AC Milan.
- 3 Arsenal matches moved for TVArsenal’s October schedule has changed after three Premier League fixtures were moved for live TV, including matches against Leeds, Forest and Liverpool.
- Cameras catch Gabriel joking with Bruno after Community Shield winCameras on the pitch caught a couple of exchanges involving Arsenal’s new signing Bruno Guimaraes on Sunday, including a joke from club and international teammate Gabriel Magalhaes.
- Arsenal summer signings Bruno & Tzolis praised by new teammatesMartin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori praised Arsenal summer signings Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis following their positive displays in the Community Shield win on Sunday.
- Manchester City star insists Community Shield not just a friendlyRuben Dias has insisted the Community Shield is a final and Manchester City wanted to win it, despite a poor performance in defeat to Arsenal on Sunday.