Arteta: no excuses for fringe players as he backs Madueke to flourish

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Mikel Arteta has put Arsenal's squad players on notice, warning that there will be no tolerance for performances blamed on a lack of rhythm as the season enters a busier phase.

The Gunners have largely stuck to a settled starting XI in the Premier League this season, with seven players featuring in all six league matches so far. Rotation has instead been reserved for the Carabao Cup and Champions League, including Tuesday's trip to Lille, where Mikel Merino and Viktor Gyokeres were given rare starts but struggled to impress.

Asked whether those underwhelming displays could be put down to a lack of sharpness from limited game time, Arteta was blunt in his response.

"They need to train more then," Arteta said. "What I don't want is an excuse. 'No but when I play I lack rhythm'. Yeah? So what do we do then? We send you on holidays? So you play, you have to be available. When you don't play, you have to make sure that you do everything you can to impact the team. Because otherwise the other ones that are playing, 'I don't perform because I'm tired'."

He continued: "So then it's always an excuse. I hate excuses. We know the role. We know that the competitiveness that we need in the team is at the maximum level and they are doing amazingly well. I don't see any player that is playing that lacks rhythm or lacks this. Everybody is involved. Everybody has played minutes and it will continue to be like this because they have really deserved that. So hopefully we can maintain that because it's a massive asset for us."

Madueke given fresh opportunity

One player looking to force his way into Arteta's plans more consistently is Noni Madueke, who has started in both of Arsenal's matches since the international break after previously only starting in the Carabao Cup this term.

Against Leeds United last weekend, Madueke was deployed on the left wing, a role Arteta has turned to in the absence of Christos Tzolis. The winger briefly featured in that position at the start of last season but has rarely been used there since.

Arteta explained the positional switch is driven as much by circumstance as tactical design. "It's down to necessities as well, sometimes, more than probably tactical decisions so far with him," he said. "I think he can play in both positions. He offers something completely different. Obviously now we have the necessity of a player on the left side with different qualities than Ebs as well, that can complement all the other unit we have on that left hand side."

He added that Madueke has settled well into the role: "It's great because he is comfortable there, he is enjoying playing there, and he is doing well. It's a good solution."

Looking ahead, Arteta predicted more minutes are coming for the winger. "He will have more minutes in the next few games," he said. "I am sure that we will start to see a closer version of Noni at the highest level."

As quoted by the Evening Standard, Arteta's comments suggest competition for places will intensify as Arsenal navigate a congested fixture schedule across multiple competitions.