Eddie Nketiah reignites his Arsenal flame with poacher’s hat-trick

The England U21 international has been used sparingly by Mikel Arteta and seemed set to leave on a free transfer this summer, but a brilliant performance will only illuminate the pathway

Eddie Nketiah’s Arsenal career seemed destined to burn to a slow end this season, fading on the peripheries as his contract peters out and Gabriel Martinelli bursts into the limelight, but tonight at the very least reignited the flame. The 22-year-old might never have established himself as a reliable starter in Mikel Arteta’s starting eleven, but he has always proven to be an artful and insatiable poacher, as capable of bundling home the ball with an instinctive lunge as a sublime flick.

He evidenced both in abundance against Sunderland as Arsenal cruised to a 5-1 victory in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals. Having been afforded just 38 minutes in the Premier League this season - the cause and consequence of his desire to leave his boyhood club in search of more regular football - it would have been understandable if Nketiah’s rhythm was ever so slightly out of sync. Instead, a hat-trick against an admittedly inferior but no less determined Sunderland side provided the perfect exhibition and reminder of Nketiah’s full repertoire.

In an unsurprising twist of fate, all three goals came from inside the six-yard-box and ranged from somewhat clumsy to outright sublime. And even if Arsenal’s opener, which Nketiah shunted in off his thigh after Rob Holding’s header was cleared off the line, didn’t emit any great degrees of glamour, it was hardly a coincidence either. Great strikers have a knack for lurking in the right positions, a predatorial edge that’s ingrained and often bares its teeth best on nights like these when an opponent is more vulnerable. Nketiah has already broken Alan Shearer’s goalscoring record as an England U21 international and has now scored ten goals in nine Carabao Cup appearances, where the bulk of his opportunities have inevitably come. It is an impressive record that is often disguised by a degree of anonymity during games when thrust into the Premier League.

Nketiah’s readiness for a more consistent run in the top-flight has never been lost on other clubs, though. Crystal Palace wanted to sign him last summer but couldn’t agree a fee with Arsenal, while several Bundesliga sides have been thought to hold an interest. Perhaps now, in the wake of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s outcasting, there may finally be space for that chance at Arsenal after all. If that is to be the case, Nketiah’s second and third goals were perfect evidence as to why. And if his opener was a little makeshift, what followed were brilliant but very different flicks.

The first, darting to the front post to meet Nuno Tavares’ cross and clip it with the outside of his foot across the goalkeeper, was as deadly as it was deft. But it was the goal that completed Nketiah’s hat-trick that warranted the most praise. That it was helped by a fantastic nutmeg from Nicolas Pepe in the build-up did no harm, but the finish was equal to it as Nketiah chopped the ball off the inside of his heel into the corner.

Whether it will be enough to guarantee him the chances he craves at Arsenal remains to be seen. There are still flaws to Nketiah’s game, namely questions over his hold-up play and decision-making in the final third, but such faults can never be expected to be ironed out without regular appearances. But there is no doubt that when in full-flight like tonight, Nketiah is a natural-born finisher who is capable of scoring goals aplenty.

After being brought down in the box in the dying stages, with Arsenal’s victory already a neatly wrapped Christmas present, Nketiah clutched the ball in his arms, turned to the referee and pointed at the spot. There was to be no chance for a fourth, despite what appeared a clear foul, but that did nothing to dim the smile on his face. If strikers live to score goals, this was a cathartic evening for a player whose progress has always been a little stop-start. And whatever decision he ultimately takes at the end of this season, performances like these will only help to illuminate the way.