Paul Merson believes Myles Lewis-Skelly has given Mikel Arteta a ‘major headache’ ahead of the second leg of Arsenal’s Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday.
Arsenal moved six points clear of Manchester City at the highest of the Premier League on Saturday with a 3-0 win at home to Fulham.
Viktor Gyokeres scored twice, while Bukayo Saka also found the web in a powerful first half on the Emirates Stadium.
Lewis-Skelly, meanwhile, began the sport in a central midfield role with Martin Zubimendi benched.
The 19-year-old, who has played as a left-back after his first-team breakthrough at Arsenal in 2024, impressed in midfield and Merson believes Arteta now has a tricky selection decision ahead of Atletico’s visit to the Emirates Stadium next week.
Asked whether Lewis-Skelly should now start against Atletico next week, Merson told Sky Sports: ‘It’s a special form of game, Fulham to Atletico Madrid.
‘He’s given Mikel a headache, a significant, major headache.
‘He gave you that energy, he lifted everybody, he’s are available in and lifted everybody, he played on the front foot, he got near people.
‘I just think recently, and I’m an enormous fan of Zubimendi, I just find he’s just been chasing the sport recently, he nearly gets there.
‘This lad [Lewis-Skelly] was tight, when he went to win a ball he won the ball, the whole lot was easy, he did the whole lot right.
‘Those easy passes give all of your top players like Saka, Trossard, Eze, Gyokeres, they make the whole lot tick together.
Arsenal’s remaining fixtures
Atletico Madrid (H) – May 5
West Ham (A) – May 10
Burnley (H) – May 18
Crystal Palace (A) – May 24
‘I don’t think Zubimendi has been doing that recently, but I’m an enormous fan of Zubimendi.’
When asked about Lewis-Skelly’s performance, Arteta said: ‘He fully deserves it, I’ve been tough on him, he had a spectacular season last 12 months when he jumped into the primary team, he had some difficult moments after that, but he stayed very humble, very focused, very aligned with what we desired to do, and I knew he was ready.
‘He’s been showing in training every single day the opportunities that he needed to play, he’s done it and today he really stepped up and I believed he had an incredible performance.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the most recent news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
MORE: Mikel Arteta explains why Bukayo Saka got here off at half-time against Fulham
MORE: Martin Odegaard injury latest as Arsenal captain misses win vs Fulham
MORE: Arsenal 3-0 Fulham: Viktor Gyokeres scores twice as Gunners go six clear at top