Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta explains Ethan Nwaneri omission as Noni Madueke injury update issued

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has explained why he left Ethan Nwaneri out of his squad to face Newcastle - despite the attacking midfielder travelling to Tyneside with the Gunners. The Spaniard has revealed he confirmed the 18-year-old's late omission during a pre-match team meeting in the North East.

Arteta said, when asked to clarify why Nwaneri was absent during the 2-1 victory over the Magpies: "So yeah, I talked to all the players and we had a meeting specifically about that and the scenarios that we're going to have throughout the season.

"Some of them are going to start, some of them are going to finish the game, some of them are going to be on the bench and won't be participating and some of them unfortunately are going to be out of the squad because with the Premier League you have the limitation with the numbers.

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"Sometimes we have to travel with more players because things can happen, somebody can get ill or we have a doubt with somebody whether the next one is going to be available to play and unfortunately we have to do that.

"But the attitude of every player, because we have explained them and personally they know how we feel about it, has been really good and they will have the chances to play."

Nwaneri played the entire 90 minutes as Arsenal beat League One outfit Port Vale 2-0 in the Carabao Cup last Wednesday. However, opportunities in the Premier League have proven hard to come by since he penned a new long-term contract with the Gunners this summer.

He has played just 130 minutes of top-flight action to date, is yet to start and was also an unused substitute in the 2-0 Champions League win at Athletic Club. Nwaneri is still adapting to the demands of full-time first-team football despite netting nine times for the Gunners last term.

There is increased competition for places where attacking positions are concerned this season following the summer arrivals of Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke, however. Arteta also added that Madueke is yet to have undergone a second scan on his knee injury sustained against Manchester City.

The England international watched Arsenal's late victory over Newcastle from home on the television as he continues his recovery. But Arteta has indicated Arsenal are still in the dark as to when he'll be able to return, adding: "No, he hasn't had a [second] scan yet so he needs to wait a little bit more still with the brace and everything.

"So he's still in a stage where everything is super protective and once he comes out of that and has the scan we'll have more clarity about it."