Mikel Arteta Confirms Matteo Guendouzi Was Dropped For The Newcastle Utd Game

Mikel Arteta had a thinly-veiled message for Matteo Guendouzi after our 4-0 win…

Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta confirmed that Matteo Guendouzi was dropped from the squad that smashed Newcastle United 4-0 and hinted at disciplinary issues surrounding the Frenchman, beIN Sports reports.

Guendouzi started our last league game at Burnley but after returning from our trip to Dubai during the winter break, Arteta had a thinly-veiled warning for the 20-year-old.

The Spaniard has often referred to a certain set of his demands as “non-negotiables”, claiming that failure to live up to those standards will see you omitted from the squad.

However, since his arrival, Arteta hasn’t had to enforce those values and the boss had been complimentary about the squad’s desire to work.

Upon receiving the team news, fans noticed a few absentees that weren’t entirely shocking, but it was the exclusion of Guendouzi that caught the eye given his ever-presence under Arteta.

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Asked about the former Lorient man’s absence, Arteta said: “The reason is that players who, in my opinion, are training better, behaving better and are more applied to deliver on the pitch, what we want, are the players selected.”

Guendouzi hasn’t necessarily been tearing up trees over the past few months and if he doesn’t get on-board with Arteta’s ideas, judging by the former Arsenal skipper’s initial message, he won’t be here too long.

Given that a number of our players are nearing full fitness, it will be interesting to see if he makes the squad for Thursday’s Europa League clash at Olympiacos.