Walcott names two Arsenal stars who can’t start together as Wright warns Arteta

Former Arsenal winger Theo Walcott insists Mikel Merino and Martin Zubimendi shouldn’t be starting in the same Gunners team as they are “very similar”.

The Gunners went behind early on against Man City on Sunday with Erling Haaland producing a clinical finish to put the Citizens ahead on nine minutes.

Both teams had chances to change the scoreline before Gabriel Martinelli popped up in the third minute of second-half injury time to equalise for Arsenal with a sublime finish.

The point sees Arsenal hold on to second place in the Premier League table with rivals Tottenham breathing down their neck, while Man City are ninth in the table.

The Gunners lined up with a very defensive midfield as Merino, Zubimendi and Declan Rice all started, while Eberechi Eze started on the Arsenal bench.

When asked about Arsenal’s midfield balance, Walcott told Match of the Day: “There are a number of players who like to start to play in that position.

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“Merino isn’t that No10 and I’d like to see someone like Eze up there who is going to be a bit more creative.

“We’ve got some similar players and you have a lot of players who are left footers as well.

“Merino and Zubimendi are both that and very similar in that sense and sometimes for me they get in each other’s way. For me, the balance isn’t right.”

Walcott added: “My question would be, why did it take until the 90th minute for Arsenal to go on the offensive, why not from the start of the game?

“I’m not normally critical of Arteta, but it feels like he got away with one today. It felt like he admitted he made a mistake with his team selection by making those two subs at half time, while his other substitutions came really late on.”

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Arsenal legend Ian Wright thinks substitutes Martinelli and Eze should have started the match with Mikel Arteta too cautious in his approach.

Wright told Premier League Productions: “In my eyes, I’m starting Martinelli and Eze.

“Martinelli can get the crowd going. Eze can make those passes like we saw him do. We need to start that quickly.

“We’re looking at a City side who came to defend. When have you ever seen that? We’ve never seen that before.”

Asked about Arteta labelling Martinelli a “finisher” rather than a starter, Wright continued: “It sounds different to being a substitute – but you’re still a substitute.

“The fact is, you’ve got to come on and you’ve got to try and save the game again.

“You want to start the game and prove you can do that when you’re starting.

“Is he going to get typecast now? Because he’s done it in the Champions League, he’s done it in another big game against a big team.

“At some stage, you think, ‘When do I get my chance to be the starter?’ – I think, you know, his performances with him coming off the bench and doing what he’s doing, only highlight the fact, ‘I want more, I’m going to prove I can do more, and when I do get the opportunity, I’ve got to be more consistent so people don’t think I’m am impact player’.”

Former Arsenal and Man City striker Emmanuel Adebayor added: “Pep Guardiola in his first year at Barcelona, he had Deco, Samuel Eto’o, Ronaldinho… he didn’t know who to play.

“I think Arteta is in that situation now. He will have a player who will knock on his door every week and say, ‘I want to play’ – that is where he must make a call.

“He must manage all these players. It’s not easy when you have players who want to play week in, week out. Some are from Brazil. Some are from England.

“They are internationals who want to play for their countries. To play for your country, you must start for your club. We’ll see how Arteta manages the situation because it can be problematic for the club.”