Keane calls Arsenal star 'really sloppy' before England start

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Roy Keane used his pre-match punditry slot to take aim at Eberechi Eze, questioning the Arsenal attacker's work off the ball ahead of England's Nations League win over the Czech Republic.

Eze has retained his place in Thomas Tuchel's squad despite a slow start to the Premier League season, in which he is yet to make a league start for the Gunners. He was left on the bench for England's opener against Spain and came off the bench in Prague and in Croatia before being handed a start on the left flank at Wembley.

Keane: 'He needs to bring his A-game'

Speaking on ITV Sport before kick-off, Keane said he had been left unimpressed by the 28-year-old's cameo in the 7-0 rout of Croatia.

"I was disappointed with him the other night when he came on," the former Manchester United midfielder said. "Obviously England are attacking and doing really well so when you get opportunities you've got to take them. I thought he was really sloppy with some of his play so it's a big opportunity for him tonight."

Keane added: "We know how good he is coming and getting the ball but we didn't see that running power off the ball. I'm not sure if he really wants to do it or if he's not aware that he's not doing it."

The criticism extended to Eze's club form, too. "When you look at the attacking players and the challenges, and I'm including with Arsenal, sometimes in his play he can just be a bit sloppy. He needs to bring his A-game," Keane said, before urging the forward to "embrace that challenge" rather than "shy away" from competition at both club and international level.

Wright and Dixon offer their take

Arsenal legend Ian Wright, alongside Keane in the studio, offered a more sympathetic reading while agreeing there is room for refinement. "He's got a playing style where if you're sloppy and you're playing with that languid kind of style then it can look worse than it is," Wright said. "I'm not saying he should change his style but he just needs to tighten everything up a bit because he's an amazing player."

Former Gunners full-back Lee Dixon, on co-commentary duty, pointed to the position Eze was asked to fill. "It's not his favourite position, I'm sure he'd admit that, but you've still got to put in a performance," Dixon said. "It's just the end product, I think, with Eze that lets him down at times."

The night ultimately belonged to Harry Kane, who scored twice on his record-equalling 125th England cap after Vladimir Coufal's own goal. Eze produced promising moments but faded as the contest wore on.

Eze now returns to north London with Arsenal's domestic schedule resuming after the international break, with the challenge of forcing his way into Mikel Arteta's starting XI still in front of him. Metro carried the full punditry exchange.