EPL: Mertesacker Vows to Give Arteta ‘Headaches’

Arsenal Academy boss, Per Mertesacker, has said his job is to give manager Mikel Arteta selection headaches.

Speaking with Ian Wright on his YouTube channel, Mertesacker vowed to bring through youngsters that will have enough quality to play in the first team.

Joe Willock, Eddie Nketiah, Reiss Nelson and Bukayo Saka are some of the youngsters making their marks this season under Arteta.

And Mertesacker has vowed to ensure that this trend will continue.

“We are really keen on giving Mikel Arteta a lot of headaches, you know.

“He must be thinking, ‘What’s going on in the academy?’ Every year there is the potential two, three players who can step onto that court.

“But I know his standards, I know what he stands for, so I need to prepare the players really well so when they step into the first-team environment they are ready and prepared,” Mertesacker said.