Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta oversaw a summer of upheaval at the Emirates, with six arriving and a host of players leaving either on loan or permanently
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Mikel Arteta hails Arsenal fans ahead of north London derby
When Arsenal sanctioned Reiss Nelson’s season-long loan deal to Feyenoord, it was with the expectation he would be a regular contributor.
Nelson had become the forgotten man under Mikel Arteta, making just two Premier League appearances in the entirety of last season.
The Gunners boss admitted it was his fault that Nelson was struggling for minutes, as he failed to find a spot for the England Under-21 international.
He did come off the bench during the opening day defeat to Brentford, but opportunities at the Emirates once again promised to be limited.
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Therefore, Arteta decided to allow Nelson to join Feyenoord in the Eredivisie, while also extending his contract until 2023.
That move appeared as nothing more than ensuring the academy graduate wouldn’t be free to leave at the end of the season.
The ideal scenario for the Gunners was that Nelson became a star in the Netherlands, making him a much more saleable asset next year.
But it hasn’t gone to plan.
Nelson is still yet to make his debut for the Dutch club, with manager Arne Slot suggesting he wasn’t used to the intensity of training he has discovered at his new club.
“Nelson had participated in almost all training sessions at Arsenal, but he experiences the training here as a bit more intense,” Slot explained earlier this month. “He suffered an overuse injury and so he is not here.”
He then moved to clarify the comments, suggesting that while it wasn’t a direct dig at Arteta’s methods, his lack of regular minutes contributed to his slow start.
I’m not saying anything about how Arsenal train; I’m saying something about how substitute player Reiss Nelson, who didn’t have much of a future there, trained.
“He was very often in the team that had to imitate the opponent. He didn’t actually play any matches.
“Now he is with a team that is busy and where he is seen as a player who has to play a lot, so that combination has caused him to have some overload problems.”
Hope that he could be brought into the fold imminently look to be quashed as well, as Slot confirmed he may not be used until after next month’s international break.
“He will train with us again, that is a good first step,” Slot told Soccernews via Sport Witness. “It’s still the small work, so he still has to take the next steps.
“Maybe that can be done towards next week, but then you also look at the schedule. It is worth the risk, if it is a risk at all, or do you wait until after the international break.”
The Dutch press have described the move as a ‘mystery’ it could quickly become a nightmare for both Nelson and his parent club.
