Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta started five summer signings in Sunday\'s 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest, with new arrivals making immediate impact as the Gunners returned from the September international break at Emirates Stadium.
Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi, Eberechi Eze, Cristhian Mosquera and Noni Madueke all featured in the starting lineup. Mosquera and Madueke earned starts due to injuries to William Saliba and Bukayo Saka respectively.
Madueke particularly impressed on the right wing during his 78-minute appearance. The left-footed winger caused consistent problems for Forest\'s defense, driving on the outside while delivering dangerous crosses into the box.
\"You can sense that there are new relationships flourishing there that are going to give us different things to become more unpredictable,\" Arteta said about his new signings.
Arteta made the tactical decision to start Mikel Merino ahead of Declan Rice in midfield. The Spanish midfielder returned from international duty having scored four goals in two matches for his country.
\"Because Mikel (Merino) comes back after scoring four goals in two games with a really high emotional state. I want to use that, when a player is in that moment, I want to play him,\" Arteta explained.
Merino partnered with Zubimendi and Martin Odegaard for the first time since their Real Sociedad days in July 2020. However, Odegaard suffered an injury after just 18 minutes, with 18-year-old Ethan Nwaneri coming on as his replacement.
Arteta liked that he continued to show his own personality in the role.
“(Nwaneri and Odegaard have) different qualities,” he said. “You can sense, especially in the first half, when he got the ball in certain areas, how comfortable he is to carry the ball straight away. The moment he’s very close to the box; he’s got one thing in his mind, which is the goal and nothing else. That’s great that we have different qualities within the same position, and against Leeds it was the same thing.”
The victory demonstrated Arsenal\'s increased squad depth following their heavy summer recruitment. Arteta acknowledged that without these signings, Arsenal \"would have been in a very different place\" this season.