Arsenal have made a strong start to the season, defeating Brighton 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday for their 13th Premier League win of the season. Mikel Arteta’s side will end the weekend with a two-goal lead at the top of the table.
Arteta has been able to rely on a number of players throughout the season as he rotates his squad from time to time to cope with a congested fixture list. However, there are some players who appear to have fallen out of favor at the Emirates Stadium. And Express Sport takes a look at four players who may never get the chance to put on an Arsenal shirt and show off what they’re capable of.
Oleksandr Zinchenko
Oleksandr Zinchenko joined Nottingham Forest on loan in the summer, but was hit by injury during the season. The 29-year-old was on the bench against Manchester City on Saturday but was unable to get on the pitch and has not played enough football since moving to the City Ground.
The Ukraine international’s contract at the Emirates Stadium expires next summer, but it seems unlikely that he will get a new contract after falling down the left-back pecking order.
Reese Nelson
Reiss Nelson is also currently on loan, having agreed to join Brentford at the end of the summer transfer window.
Like Zinchenko, his campaign was severely disrupted, with him playing just 34 minutes in the Premier League for the Bees.
Nelson will struggle to control game time in north London these days. And Arteta could try to move him to another club on a permanent deal in next summer’s transfer window.
Jakub Kivioglu
Jakub Kivioglu has been a regular player for Arteta since last season, with the Poland international starting the last eight Premier League games in Gabriel’s absence.
However, the 25-year-old was sent on loan to Porto at the end of the summer transfer window and the Gunners manager appears to be happy with his other options at the Emirates Stadium.
Porto are obliged to acquire Kivior at the end of the season, so he is unlikely to represent Arsenal again.
Fabio Vieira
Arsenal had high hopes for Fabio Vieira when the midfielder made his move to the capital in July 2022.
However, the 25-year-old has failed to live up to expectations under Arteta and was told by the Gunners’ transfer chief a year ago that he could leave the club after being put up for sale.
Vieira is currently on loan at Hamburg but is unlikely to be part of Arteta’s plans in the future.
