Gary Lineker urges Arsenal to play Myles Lewis-Skelly in midfield ahead of Martin Zubimendi

“No disrespect to Martin Zubimendi , but he’s a cautious player. He is a defensive midfield player, and he is a player that predominantly knocks it back. I thought Myles Lewis-Skelly came in, in a midfield position, not like a left-back, in a midfield position, and his first thought is to turn and look forward, and quickly, and I think that really enabled Arsenal to get it forward quicker.

“And obviously it was a bit of a plan that pushed the wingers higher, and Saka was getting the ball in time to actually take someone on. And I think it made a fundamental difference, and I think that’s quite interesting because he’s a young player, we’ve known him as a full-back, but in that midfield area, and I think the way he was so positive and moving forward.

“Rice is a different kind of player in the sense that he’s probably at his best when he’s running with the ball, but he’s also not really a player that tends to look for forward passes particularly quickly either. So, I think he really helped them.”

The teenage sensation was in full flow against Fulham and has now handed Arteta a selection headache ahead of the mid-week game. Zubimendi remains the man for the job if the Gunners want to go cautious against Atletico, but it could be a dangerous game play following a 1-1 draw in the first-leg.