Arsenal to recall Matteo Guendouzi this month despite rift with Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta has been tipped to spring a major January window surprise, by recalling exiled loanee Matteo Guendouzi.
The Frenchman was a regular in the early months of Arteta’s Arsenal spell, but dropped completely out of favour following an ugly post-match altercation with Brighton striker Neal Maupay.
Guendouzi was reportedly aggrieved with his compatriot after he injured Bernd Leno during the feisty clash back in June.
Maupay would go on to score a late winner, provoking an angry reaction from the Gunners midfielder.
Although he escaped a ban from the Football Association, Arteta relegated the 21-year-old to the reserves, keeping him out of the squad for the remainder of the 2019/20 season.
Deemed surplus to requirements, Guendouzi was then sent on loan to Hertha Berlin for the season, where he has impressed for his new side.
Despite making just nine appearances, he has earned rave reviews from manager Bruno Labbadia, highlighting his improving maturity in the dressing room.
“We’re glad we managed to recruit him,” Labbadia said. “He is a very, very good player, who has a sense of space and is very technically skilled.
“Although he’s young, he gives instructions. He doesn’t care at all that he doesn’t speak the language.”
However, he could be on the move again, with Bild claiming Arsenal are set to recall him this month.
The report suggests Guendouzi will either be sold permanently, or brought back into the first-team fold.
Bringing the midfielder back to north London would go against Arteta’s previous mission statement for the January window, suggesting their top priority is on trimming the squad.
Arsenal home kit for 2021/22 season leaked with 'mystery blue' inclusion
He said: "We have a large squad and we knew that. A lot of things that should have happened in the summer, we cannot accomplish for different reasons.
"There are some players that are going to go on loan and going to leave and that is the priority at the moment.
"We cannot sustain the numbers that we have in certain positions and we are looking to do that, and then we will see if we have the right opportunity in the positions where we need some more help."
So far, William Saliba and Sead Kolasinac have sealed loan moves away from the Emirates, with 19-year-old Omar Rekik the only arrival.
Source: Read Full Article