He's becoming like Zinchenko: Arteta must drop Arsenal's "future captain"

Arsenal‘s ambitious quadruple hopes this season have now been left in tatters.

Indeed, at one stage, this campaign, Mikel Arteta‘s Gunners were dreaming of four luxurious trophies, but now they are clinging to the hope of two after losing in the EFL Cup final to Manchester City and then being humbled in the FA Cup away at Southampton.

Tonda Eckert’s Saints pulled off an almighty shock in the quarter-final stages of the esteemed competition, as Ross Stewart and Shea Charles guided the Championship outfit to a memorable win at the expense of the Premier League leaders.

Far too many Arsenal players put in unconvincing shifts at St. Mary’s, as the arrogant away side completely underestimated their lower league hosts.

Arsenal’s biggest underperformers vs Saints

While Eckert and Co lapped up all the applause at the final whistle, the Arsenal players and Arteta looked shellshocked, as they trudged off down the tunnel at the close of the 2-1 defeat.

Ultimately, it was a lacklustre showing all over the pitch, with Stewart’s opener exposing the rustiness of the likes of Cristhian Mosquera and Ben White at the back, as the latter just watched on as the Scotsman smashed home the opener.

Winning just one duel all night long, the Arsenal number four won’t look back on this trip to the South Coast with much fondness.

Moreover, Gabriel Jesus will surely be moved on from North London in the near future, as he could only muster up two weak efforts at Daniel Peretz’s goal throughout the match.

To make matters worse, Viktor Gyokeres – who should have looked slightly fatigued from international duty – managed to tap home a goal from only 30 minutes of action, when Jesus was put out of his misery.

Max Dowman was one rare shining light for the Gunners, as the classy 16-year-old completed five silky dribbles, but his energy wasn’t enough on its own to stop a cup upset from occurring.

While Arteta will surely keep picking his vibrant number 56, he must forget about using one player who is becoming another Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Arsenal’s new Zinchenko

When Zinchenko first joined Arsenal from Manchester City, he was a joy to watch as a unique inverted full-back in Arteta’s set-up.

His debut season on North London soil saw him classily go about his business, with the Ukrainian displaying an unerring coolness with the ball at his feet, as evidenced by him averaging an 88% pass accuracy during the 2022/23 season.

But, as time wore on, the 29-year-old would be exposed for his frailties out of possession, as he struggled to really stamp his mark on the left-back spot. Indeed, his final Premier League campaign donning Arsenal red only saw him win a feeble 1.6 duels per league contest, leading to him being moved on.

Myles Lewis-Skelly might well succumb to the same fate, as the Arsenal defender who once left Ian Wright “astonished” with his ability on the ball – with a sublime 94% pass accuracy amassed last season in the top-flight – looked weak and unsure against the Championship hosts.

Lewis-Skelly vs Southampton
Stat	Lewis-Skelly
Minutes played	60
Goals scored	0
Assists	0
Touches	36
Shots	0
Accurate passes	25/28 (89%)
Key passes	1
Accurate crosses	0/1
Successful dribbles	1/1
Tackles won	0
Total duels won	3/4

Another flat showing was served up by the uncertain 19-year-old, who has only been handed one start all campaign long in the Premier League, with Lewis-Skelly failing to get forward and join in with the midfield, as seen in him attempting zero shots at Peretz’s net.

Only attempting one dribble and one cross, too, the teenager, who was once described as Arsenal’s “future captain” by club insider Hand of Arsenal, just looks lost now in the inverted full-back role, with a midfield role perhaps better suited to him, to get the very best out of his varied skillset.

Much like Zinchenko, in possession and in midfield, he looks a million dollars but out of possession and when he is forced to defend is where the true problems lie. That underpins precisely why Arteta has not trusted him to start many games this season.

An opportunity to start more ofte, however, doesn’t look as if it will be forthcoming, as Arteta surely wouldn’t experiment that much, with a Premier League title on the line.

With Manchester United reportedly keen on Lewis-Skelly’s signature, the 19-year-old might well have to leave his boyhood club to succeed again, as his poor performance was just one of many demoralising takeaways from the disastrous 2-1 defeat on the South Coast.