What is going on with Ethan Nwaneri at Marseille? How his loan spell unravelled | OneFootball

Ethan Nwaneri enjoyed a fine start to his loan at Marseille, scoring on his debut in a 3-1 win over Lens.

But since then, the Arsenal youngster’s spell away from the Emirates has not panned out as he would have hoped.

The 19-year-old broke into the first team under Mikel Arteta last season, partly due to the club’s injury crisis with several key players missing long periods.

Nwaneri played 37 times in all competitions last season, scoring nine goals in a breakout season for the attacker who made his Arsenal debut at the age of 15.

But this season saw his game time greatly reduce. He played just 11 times in all competitions for the Gunners, seeking to further his development by heading to Ligue 1 in January until the end of the season.

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“I think it’s a great opportunity for me,” Nwaneri said shortly after signing for the club on a temporary basis.

“I didn’t hesitate. Honestly, my answer to all of that was yes. I think that’s why I came. The experience, seeing a big club like this, learning as much as possible, and being able to really add that to my skill-set at the end of the season.

“When I came here, obviously I wasn’t yet 100 per cent fit, but I’m working on it. I’ve also spoken with the staff and I think I’ll be able to play more and more. I felt good during the last match. That’s normal, of course, it’s a process. There haven’t been any injuries, so I feel good, honestly.”

What has gone wrong?

Nwaneri has certainly suffered from Marseille’s change of manager. The Hale End academy graduate signed for the French club when Roberto De Zerbi was in charge, but the Italian would leave his job just a few weeks after Nwaneri signed, and is now in charge of Arsenal’s fierce rivals Tottenham.

Habib Beye took over from De Zerbi and has not afforded the Arsenal youngster the opportunities he would have hoped for.

He was an unused substitute in Marseille’s 1-1 draw with Nice on Sunday, the fourth time he was left on the bench without being brought on since February 14. He also played just one minute against Auxerre on March 13.

Quizzed on Nwaneri’s lack of game time after his most recent snub, Beye said the Arsenal youngster needed to show more commitment.

“He’s a quality player, but he has to give us way more in his day-to-day commitment,” the Marseille boss said. “Other players gave way more.”’

What had looked a smart decision from Nwaneri, and something which would put him in a position to play a bigger part for Arsenal next season, has not turned out as such.

Nwaneri did at least get to show more of what he is capable of while playing for the England Under-21s in March, scoring twice in a 4-1 win over Moldova at Norwich City’s Carrow Road.

Speaking to Hayters ahead of that game, England U21 boss Lee Carsley had praised his decision to join Marseille on loan.

“It’s a brilliant decision,” Carsley said. “We’ve seen it in the past with different players that we’ve had playing abroad. 

“Germany and France now seem to be a really good learning environment for these players.

“I’m thinking of some of the players in the past that straight away that come to my mind, that thrived in those environments. The more experiences we can give our players, potentially, the more it’s going to help the senior team.”

That might still prove to be the case, however, but in a different way. There are many examples of players learning a lot from difficult moments during loan spells. Morgan Rogers was relegated with Blackpool while on loan from Manchester City before becoming one of the Premier League’s top talents at Aston Villa.

England captain Harry Kane is perhaps the best example, having several mediocre or unsuccessful loan spells before becoming the player he is today.

And it certainly looks like the challenge for Nwaneri will be to do the same, unless something drastically changes between now and the end of the season.

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