‘I’m disappointed’ – Arsenal told they made big transfer mistake this January

Jeremie Aliadiere says he was ‘disappointed’ to see Ethan Nwaneri leave Arsenal on loan this January as the youngster has something special that Mikel Arteta’s squad is ‘lacking’.

Nwaneri is widely regarded to be among the most exciting young talents in the English game having broken into Arsenal’s first-team squad at the age of just 15 back in 2022.

But Nwaneri, now aged 18, struggled to nail down regular minutes for the high-flying Gunners in the first half of the campaign, failing to make a single Premier League start under Mikel Arteta.

Arsenal bosses had initially been reluctant to consider loan offers from Premier League rivals sniffing around Nwaneri, with both West Ham and Bournemouth known to be admirers.

However, the north London giants changed their stance when Marseille made contact to discuss a temporary agreement for the England Under-21 international.

Discussions between Arsenal and Marseille progressed at a pace over the following days and Nwaneri made the trip across the Channel to complete his move to the Ligue 1 outfit last week.

Just three days after touching down in France, the teenager would go on to enjoy a dream debut as he doubled Marseille’s lead with a solo wonder strike in a 3-1 victory over Lens.

‘From an Arsenal point of view, I’m disappointed to see him go because I really believe that what he’s got is something that we haven’t got,’ ex-Arsenal forward Aliadiere told The Sun.

‘Somebody that quickly wants to go forward, take on two, three players, go and shoot, which I think we are lacking at the moment.

‘His game, the pace, the power, and like I said, he takes players on.

‘I think for Marseille, which is a top club in France, he is going to be a success.’

Aliadiere, who spent three seasons with Ligue 1 club Lorient, is confident Nwaneri’s playing style is perfectly suited to the French top flight.

‘If I could have given him any advice before, I would have told him exactly what he has done, which is to go on loan for six months, but go on loan to a top club in a top division and abroad in particular,’ the Frenchman added.

‘I do feel that Ligue 1 will probably suit him better and it will be a massive success there. I have got no doubt about it.’

Much like Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly – another product of Arsenal’s Hale End academy – enjoyed a remarkable breakthrough last term before coming up against difficulties this time around.

Given Lewis-Skelly has made just one solitary start in the Premier League thus far, Aliadiere feels the 19-year-old may have benefitted from a loan move in the second half of the campaign.

‘Yeah, probably, because he is one of those that, even when [Riccardo] Calafiori is injured, Mikel [Arteta] looks like he would rather have [Jurrien] Timber down there or [Piero] Hincapie now,’ Aliadiere explained.

‘So where is Myles fitting in this pecking order? I know in terms of, probably from Mikel’s point of view, he wants to keep as many players as he can at the club, because we have got so many games.

‘But then on the other side, you’ve got Myles, who broke into the England squad last year and played so many games for Arsenal and doesn’t get many opportunities.

‘And with the World Cup coming up in a few months he is probably thinking, ‘What do I need to do? Because I would love to go to the World Cup. I want to get back in the England squad. What do I need to do to get there?’

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