Does Mikel Arteta still have a player management problem?

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·30 January 2026

Does Mikel Arteta still have a player management problem?

This headline was born out of the situation surrounding two players in particular, Christian Nørgaard and Martin Zubimendi. Both central midfielders were signed in the summer of 2025 to replace the outgoing Jorginho and Thomas Partey in the Arsenal squad. Having chased his signature for over two years, there was little doubt that Zubimendi would arrive as the undisputed first choice in defensive midfield. The 31 year old Danish international was brought in largely as his understudy, a player expected to step in and perform when required.

A clear imbalance in minutes

Christian Nørgaard has so far made 12 appearances for Arsenal this season, with only seven of those coming from the start. That makes him one of the most under-used players in the squad. In fact, only Kai Havertz and Kepa Arrizabalaga have featured less, with one being a goalkeeper and the other returning from a five month injury lay off.

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In stark contrast, Martin Zubimendi has been heavily relied upon. The Spaniard has logged an enormous amount of minutes, starting more games than any other Arsenal player this season, with 29 starts to his name. He also sits among those with the highest total minutes played. In my view, that workload is directly linked to his recent dip in form. Zubimendi was at fault for United’s opening goal last week and was also partially responsible for their second.

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Trust, rotation and recurring questions

Every time Nørgaard has been trusted from the start, he has performed reliably. However, his limited involvement suggests Arteta does not fully trust the experienced Dane. There is no inherent problem with that, but it becomes difficult to justify when Zubimendi is being run into the ground.

There has long been talk of perceived favouritism under Arteta. I think much of that is exaggerated, but the Spaniard has certainly faced questions over his player management throughout his tenure. Take the Champions League trip away to Inter as an example. There was no need for Zubimendi or Bukayo Saka to play the full 90 minutes in a fixture of limited significance. It felt unnecessary.

Arteta has also persisted with Martin Ødegaard in the starting eleven, despite the captain looking like a player who would benefit from a spell on the bench.

I will leave it there. Returning to the headline, does Arteta still have a player management problem, or is this simply the reality of managing a large squad across multiple competitions?

Benjamin Kenneth

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