Mikel Arteta reveals why Emile Smith Rowe has not featured amid Arsenal future admission

There were cheers aplenty as Arsenal returned to the Champions League against PSV last week. The biggest one of the night though did not come for any of the Gunners' four goals or the sounds of the competition's famous theme song before kick off. Instead it came for the introduction of Emile Smith Rowe.

Despite playing just 241 minutes last season, the Hale Ender remains one of the most popular members of the Arsenal squad. Mikel Arteta admitted the reception for the man who arguably saved his job in a sliding doors victory over Chelsea on Boxing Day in 2020 made him emotional. Despite external perceptions he insists the he shares the fanbase's admiration for Smith Rowe.

«Here he is incredibly popular,» he said on Tuesday ahead of Arsenal's Carabao Cup third round clash with Brentford. «We all love him. It’s no different to what the people feel to what we feel about him.»

Still though, that love is yet to translate into minutes. That brief cameo against PSV was Smith Rowe's first outing of this season, while a five minute appearance in added time against Tottenham on Sunday was all he has managed in the league. This is despite an impressive showing with England's Under-21s in the Euros over the summer and some promising appearances in pre-season. Arteta has insisted that will change when Arsenal travel to the Gtech Community Stadium on Wednesday night.

«There's been many reasons why he hasn't started a match,» the Spaniard said. «He was out for a long, long time. He had a sequence of matches that he played with the national team, then he came in and didn't participate. In the last two matches he's played more minutes and tomorrow he will have a big chance to show that he can play at this level and be a really important