Pardew warns Eze faces impact-sub role at Arsenal as £55m Araujo pursuit stalls

Arsenal head into Wednesday’s Champions League fixture against Bayern Munich with questions lingering over Eberechi Eze’s role in Mikel Arteta’s system, after the forward was hauled off at half-time during the weekend’s 1-0 Premier League win over Nottingham Forest.

The victory kept Arsenal three points behind league leaders Manchester City, but four of their six league wins this season have been by a single goal — a pattern that has kept scrutiny on individual performances, with Eze the latest to face it.

Former Premier League manager Alan Pardew believes the ex-Crystal Palace man is not suited to either of the positions Arteta has tried him in. Speaking on talkSPORT, Pardew argued that Eze’s instinct to drift centrally makes him a liability on the left flank, and that his best use for Arsenal would be as a late substitute rather than a starter.

“In certain games, against lesser opposition, Eze will be given that No. 10 position,” Pardew said. “But I’ve seen him on that left side for Crystal Palace a few times and it’s just not him. He’s never going to go down the left-hand side and whip crosses in — he wants to come and play centrally. He’s going to make the game too narrow and therefore you’ve not got enough width, so it’s a problem.”

Pardew added that Arteta was right to withdraw Eze at the interval, with Noni Madueke coming on to score the decisive goal, but questioned whether the forward should have started in that position at all. “I think his role at Arsenal will be as a sub — if they need a goal, the manager can give him the last 10-15 minutes of games.”

On the transfer front, reported interest in Sporting CP midfielder Maxi Araujo appears to have gone quiet. Both Arsenal and Manchester United had been linked with the Uruguayan, but according to Sport Witness, neither club has stepped up their pursuit since failing to secure a deal in the summer window. Speculation on the continent had pointed to a potential £55 million bid, though no concrete move has materialised from either side.