0 duels won, 0 long balls, 14 passes: Arteta must immediately drop 24-touch Arsenal star after Atalanta display – opinion

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta should consider a change in the final third when the Gunners face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Gunners started their Champions League campaign against Atalanta on the road yesterday.

They had a positive start with four shots attempted in the opening 30 minutes with two on target.

However, the club mustered only two more shots for the rest of the game at the Gewiss Stadium.

David Raya secured a point for the London heavyweights with an exceptional double penalty save, but they could have easily won the game on another night.

Gabriel Martinelli had another frustrating game from the left wing.

The Brazilian was guilty of squandering a clear-cut chance in the recent win at Tottenham Hotspur.

We saw a repeat versus Atalanta. Martinelli got himself into a brilliant position after a quick one-two in the first half, but completely missed the target.

He had a fantastic chance in the 77th minute. Kai Havertz delivered a fine through ball, but Martinelli failed to test the goalkeeper in a one-on-one situation.

Aside from his misses, Martinelli registered just 14 passes with 24 touches. He failed to win any duels and completed none of his four long balls on the night.

Martinelli has had two underwhelming performances from the starting line-up and we won’t be surprised if manager Mikel Arteta chooses to replace him with Leandro Trossard.

Trossard does not possess the pace of Martinelli in the final third, but the Belgian has shown time and time again that he has the ability to convert chances.

That could be critical against City this weekend where goalscoring opportunities could be at a premium for both teams. It could be a low-scoring affair.

Alongside Martinelli, there is a good possibility that Thomas Partey could be axed from the XI.

Stats from Sofascore.com