The exiled Frenchman has not played a single game for Arsenal since going medieval on Brighton's Neal Maupay in June. Despite not training with the Gunners, Matteo Guendouzi got called up by France Under-21s.
The Arsenal outcast wore the captain's armband in his first competitive appearance since June, a European Youth Championship qualifier vs Georgia on Saturday.
He played a full game and was impressive as his side recorded a confident 2-0 win. Tribuna.com analyses the midfielder's performance.
π΄ 1: Expert playmaking skills
Here you can see Matteo switching the ball to the right side. He is under pressure by a Georgia forward yet Guendo sends the ball over his head.
In the screenshot below, the Arsenal man notices that all closer options are marked and decides against sending the ball to the defenders.
Instead, he advances the attack with a switch to the left side:
Matteo was previously criticised for poor footballing vision. Yet the Georgia game proves his passing skills have improved and he has learned how to read the game better.
Guendouzi showed some good progressive passing as well, creating several opportunities for his teammates, including ex-Gunner Reine-Adelaide.
π΄ 2: Free-kick assist
Matteo was taken down by a Georgian player on the edge of the penalty area and decided to take a free-kick himself.
Guendouzi sent the ball into the area, where it bounces off Beriashvili straight into the net. Matteo gets an assist.
While the quality of defending was abysmal, the Gunner deserves praise for the brilliant execution of the free-kick.
He has never been seen as a set-pieces specialist at the Emirates yet this goal shows he has practiced his delivery skills while away from the squad.
π΄ 3. Anger control
Everyone knows Matteo has got a short fuse, and Georgia U21 boss is aware of that, too. That's why he clearly instructed his midfielder Ardazishvili to kick Guendo as often as possible.
It was Ardazishvili who fouled on the Frenchman in the above episode with the goal, but he was seen trying to disbalance Matteo on other occasions, too.
Here the Georgian brings the Gunner down:
... and then slaps the back of Guendo's head:
Georgia's No. 10 clearly tried to get into Matteo's head and make him lose his temper.
Yet Guendouzi showed the Ainsley Maitland-Niles level of composure (100 per cent, 20/20 Football Manager rating) and did not react to Ardazishvili's antics at all.
Does that warrant a return to Arsenal's starting XI? Depends on Arteta β who earlier refused to close the door for the curly-haired youngster.
Matteo has clearly proven he is capable of improving his game and working on his character, so we would not be surprised if we see him back in the first-team later in September.
Do you think Matteo should get a second chance at Arsenal?
