Arsenal fans bemused by Mikel Arteta’s decision to keep playing Willian following latest poor showing vs Leeds

By Josh Barker Published: February 14, 2021 6:27 pmLast Updated: February 14, 2021 7:56 pm

Arsenal vs Leeds

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal played host to Leeds United in a Premier League clash on Sunday evening.

The Gunners headed into the tie no doubt eager to put an end to their mini dip in form, which had seen them lose two in a row vs Aston Villa and Wolves.

And, when all was said and done at the Emirates, this is exactly what they managed.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring inside 13 minutes, cutting in from his favoured left side to squeeze an effort past Illan Meslier:

The Leeds shot-stopper then brought Bukayo Saka down 41 minutes in, handing Arsenal a penalty, which Aubameyang stepped up to convert:

Hector Bellerin added a 3rd right on the stroke of half-time, before Aubameyang notched his 3rd and the Gunners’ 4th of the day two minutes into the second-half.

Leeds did manage to pull two goals back via Pascal Struijk and Helder Costa, but Arsenal held on for all three points.

Why Willian?

On an otherwise positive evening for those on the red half of north London, however, Arsenal’s fans highlighted one issue with their side’s win over Leeds.

This came in the form of Mikel Arteta’s decision to bring on Willian. The Brazilian of course signed for the Gunners over the summer on a free transfer. But, barring a decent showing vs Fulham on the Premier League’s opening weekend, to say that Willian has proven subpar in an Arsenal shirt would be putting it lightly.

In turn, supporters of the north Londoners have now questioned why, despite countless poor displays, including on Sunday vs Leeds, Mikel Arteta has continued to persist with the winger, especially at the expense of players such as Gabriel Martinelli and Nicolas Pepe:

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This article was edited by Conor Laird.

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Premier League table

# Team MP D P 1 Manchester City FC 23 32 53 2 Manchester United FC 24 19 46 3 Leicester City FC 24 16 46 4 Liverpool FC 24 13 40 5 Chelsea FC 23 14 39 6 West Ham United FC 23 6 39 7 Everton FC 21 6 37 8 Aston Villa FC 22 12 36 9 Tottenham Hotspur FC 23 11 36 10 Leeds United 22 0 32 11 Arsenal FC 23 4 31 12 Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 24 -7 30 13 Southampton FC 23 -9 29 14 Crystal Palace FC 24 -15 29 15 Brighton & Hove Albion FC 24 -5 26 16 Burnley FC 23 -12 26 17 Newcastle United FC 23 -13 25 18 Fulham FC 22 -14 15 19 West Bromwich Albion 24 -36 13 20 Sheffield United FC 23 -22 11 Player Team Goals Salah, Mohamed Liverpool FC 17 Fernandes, Bruno Manchester United FC 14 Kane, Harry Tottenham Hotspur FC 13 Son, Heung Min Tottenham Hotspur FC 13 Calvert-Lewin, Dominic Everton FC 13 Vardy, Jamie Leicester City FC 12 Bamford, Patrick Leeds United 12 Gundogan, Ilkay Manchester City FC 11 Wilson, Callum Newcastle United FC 10 Watkins, Ollie Aston Villa FC 10 Zaha, Wilfried Crystal Palace FC 9 Rashford, Marcus Manchester United FC 8 Sterling, Raheem Manchester City FC 8 Ings, Danny Southampton FC 8 Barnes, Harvey Leicester City FC 8 Lacazette, Alexandre Arsenal FC 8 Aubameyang, Pierre-Emerick Arsenal FC 8 Soucek, Tomas West Ham United FC 8 Maddison, James Leicester City FC 7 Mane, Sadio Liverpool FC 7 Player Team Red Cards Yellow Cards Gallagher, Conor West Bromwich Albion 0 8 Bellerin, Hector Arsenal FC 0 7 Evans, Jonny Leicester City FC 0 7 Egan, John Sheffield United FC 1 6 Bissouma, Yves Brighton & Hove Albion FC 1 6 Milivojevic, Luka Crystal Palace FC 1 6 Grealish, Jack Aston Villa FC 0 6 Romeu, Oriol Southampton FC 0 6 Maguire, Harry Manchester United FC 0 6 Lundstram, John Sheffield United FC 1 5 Kante, N`Golo Chelsea FC 0 6 Hayden, Isaac Newcastle United FC 0 6 Ward-Prowse, James Southampton FC 0 5 Dallas, Stuart Leeds United 0 5 Klich, Mateusz Leeds United 0 5 Doucoure, Abdoulaye Everton FC 0 5 Reid, Bobby Fulham FC 0 5 Shaw, Luke Manchester United FC 0 5 McGinn, John Aston Villa FC 0 5 Neves, Ruben Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 0 5 Player Team Assists Kane, Harry Tottenham Hotspur FC 11 Grealish, Jack Aston Villa FC 10 Fernandes, Bruno Manchester United FC 9 De Bruyne, Kevin Manchester City FC 9 Son, Heung Min Tottenham Hotspur FC 6 Rashford, Marcus Manchester United FC 6 Digne, Lucas Everton FC 6 Sterling, Raheem Manchester City FC 5 Maddison, James Leicester City FC 5 Firmino, Roberto Liverpool FC 5 Ward-Prowse, James Southampton FC 5 Werner, Timo Chelsea FC 5 Raphinha Leeds United 5 Robertson, Andrew Liverpool FC 5 Cresswell, Aaron West Ham United FC 5 Shaw, Luke Manchester United FC 5 Vardy, Jamie Leicester City FC 4 Bamford, Patrick Leeds United 4 Wilson, Callum Newcastle United FC 4 Harrison, Jack Leeds United 4