Saved by Odegaard: Noni Madueke Has Been a Worse Arsenal Signing Than Gyokeres

· GiveMeSport

Arsenal edged past Napoli on Wednesday night but could have put the game to bed with a golden chance late on.

Arsenal continued their all-winning start to the season with a 1-0 win over Napoli on Tuesday night, but Mikel Arteta's side failed to make a dominant performance reflect in the scoreline.

It was the in-form Martin Odegaard who found himself on the scoresheet once again, breaking the deadlock after 75 minutes, and the Norway international will rightfully win the plaudits once again.

After the match, Arteta revelled in the win with little time for critics, but there was one particularly frustrating moment in the match that will stay with Arsenal supporters. That came through Noni Madueke.

The England international turned on the burners on an 85th-minute Gunners break, leaving chasing Napoli defenders little hope of catching him. Madueke is brilliant at that, but the problem has always been what comes after.

When squared the ball by Kai Havertz, the winger had oodles of space to pick his shot past Vanja Milinković-Savić. What did Madueke do? Fire the attempt straight at the panicking goalkeeper.

To make matters worse, Madueke and his teammates involved in the move failed to show enthusiasm to get back and defend, leaving Arteta sprinting down the touchline and tearing his hair out.

Madueke's lack of clinicality has become familiar sight for the Gunners supporters - although starboy Bukayo Saka was also wayward in midweek. Just minutes after that chance, Madueke danced inside brilliantly, only to lash a shot towards the corner flag. The former Chelsea man needs to improve, especially as Arteta's men look to level up this season.

Christos Tzolis has hit the ground running, Ezri Konsa looks assured in defence and Riccardo Calafiori has become almost unplayable. The star of the show at the moment, however, is Odegaard.

The midfielder scored his fourth goal of the season against Napoli and, if it wasn't for that strike, Madueke's missed sitter would have come under even more fire. Speaking on TNT Sports after the match, Arsenal legend Martin Keown said:

> "One goal he scored last season. This is a different animal. Fitter, hungrier, and setting an example to the other players. He's oozing with confidence at the moment."

Those attributes are exactly what Madueke must find in his game at a crucial point in his Arsenal career. Viktor Gyokeres was readily thrown under the bus as the transfer flop last season following his £55 million move, but the striker still plundered 21 goals across all competitions.

If Madueke can't find his scoring boots, he risks becoming one of the biggest transfer regrets of the Arteta era at the Emirates Stadium.

He was poor in the Champions League match.

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