'A great headache' - can Madueke stake claim for Arsenal and England?

The sight of Noni Madueke flying past defenders and putting dangerous crosses into the penalty area will have been a welcome sight for Mikel Arteta.

And Madueke’s performance in Arsenal’s 4-0 hammering of Leeds will have been even more well received, given that he was drafted into the starting line-up minutes before kick-off after Bukayo Saka picked up a hip injury in the warm-up.

The 23-year-old created Martin Zubimendi’s opener, before seeing his corner punched into the Leeds net by goalkeeper Karl Darlow for the Gunners’ second, as Arteta’s men moved seven points clear at the Premier League summit.

Madueke was signed by Arsenal from Chelsea this summer – with some fans questioning the move – in a bid to strengthen their squad depth and provide cover should key man Saka pick up injuries.

And the England winger showed in his 60 minutes on the pitch just why the club made that decision.

Arteta said: “He was ready. Because you cannot do that in two minutes. The way he prepares, the way he’s waiting for opportunity, I think paid off today because he really impacted the team.”

While Arsenal are waiting for a diagnosis on the extent of Saka’s injury, Madueke will be hopeful he has earned another start for Tuesday’s EFL Cup semi-final second leg against former club Chelsea.

Saka and Madueke are also competing for a place for England as the summer’s World Cup approaches. So will the latter now get the chance to start staking his own claim?

“Noni Madueke was really good, especially when you come so late into the game,” former England midfielder Fara Williams told the BBC’s Final Score.

“It is an opportunity for him and he has performed well. When he went in at Arsenal and Saka got injured, he had an opportunity to get some games, then he got injured himself.

“When he has been playing for England, he has shown what he can do. He will be a headache for both managers, Mikel Arteta and Thomas Tuchel, in the summer.”

Ex-Manchester United striker Dion Dublin added on Final Score: “Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke are both internationals, and both doing an incredible job.

“Saka will likely start [for Arsenal and England] because he is the better of the two, and he is more consistent. But it is a great headache to have.”

Arsenal’s strength in depth proves vital again

Arsenal have had injuries to key players in defence and attack throughout this season, but they have been able to navigate those challenges thanks to their strength in depth.

And Arteta will be delighted that the attackers in his squad performed in the win over Leeds.

Arsenal’s attack has not always been firing this season, with Viktor Gyokeres’ goal in the second half just his sixth in the league this season.

Before the Swedish international put Gabriel Martinelli’s excellent cross into the back of the net, own goals were the joint top source of goals for Arteta’s side.

The amount of own goals that Arsenal benefit from is in part down to their excellence from set-pieces and the pressure they put on oppositions.

Only in the 2009-10 season have the Gunners benefited from more own goals in a single Premier League campaign, with six.

But despite Gyokeres’ struggles at times this season, the £64m summer signing from Sporting has scored four goals in his last six appearances in all competitions and is now the Gunners’ outright top scorer with 11 goals.

Gyokeres had been dropped to the bench for Gabriel Jesus for Arsenal’s 3-2 defeat to Manchester United following a brace for the Brazilian in the Champions League, but was restored to the starting line-up for this win.

Arteta made clear early in the season that his “finishers” would be important, and the fact that Jesus scored from the bench on Saturday, along with the impact from Madueke and substitutes Odegaard and Martinelli, will have pleased him.

The Arsenal manager was also able to give Kai Havertz a start in the Premier League for the first time in nearly a year and, with the majority of the squad now fit, Arteta can rotate his players as they compete for trophies across four competitions.

Questions answered by Arsenal

Arsenal have not won the title since 2004 and, after not winning their previous three league matches, the talk was that the Gunners were starting to crack under the pressure.

But Arteta has provided the calm presence for his side and instilled confidence into his team as they look to go one better than the last three seasons, when they have finished in second place.

“All the questions that were asked of this Arsenal team, they have answered every single one of them,” Paul Robinson said on BBC Radio 5 Live. “Every player has contributed, the substitutes have added goals – excellent today.

“Arsenal had a swagger and a presence. They came here as league leaders and all the noise around them before the game was quickly put to bed. They dominated from start to finish.

“They were a team of leaders out on the field, and even when Arteta made the changes, the players off the bench came on and scored goals.

“Madueke, replacing Saka in the line-up, got an assist and a goal. They have strength in depth,” Robinson added.

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