Madueke's 'anger and conviction' shows he's more than a 'finisher'

Noni Madueke may not have the starting role he wants at Arsenal but his winning goal against Nottingham Forest showed why he is one of Mikel Arteta's valued "finishers".

The England international scored a second-half winner to earn Arsenal a vital three points in their defence of the Premier League title.

Madueke has started just one top-flight game this season, a 2-1 win over Leeds in the Gunners' last Premier League outing before they beat Oliver Glasner's side on Sunday.

Arsenal's summer was dominated by talk of their search for an elite forward, with the left wing one of the positions identified.

But after unsuccessful pursuits of world class players such as Vinicius Jr and Julian Alvarez, the only new addition in that position was Christos Tzolis, the winger brought in to replace the outgoing Leandro Trossard.

Tzolis has started the season well and has been the first-choice winger for Arteta, meaning that Madueke and Eberechi Eze have had to be content with the majority of their minutes coming from the bench or in the Carabao Cup.

However, Tzolis is now out with a hamstring injury picked up while playing for Greece, and that has presented a chance for Madueke to show Arteta why he should be considering the former Chelsea man as much more than a finisher - that's a term Arteta uses for his substitutes.

Madueke did well when starting against Leeds, praised by Arteta for being the best player at the club during the international break. The Arsenal boss said the winger "grabbed it (the start) with both hands".

The England international also started on the right wing, his more natural position, against Lille in a Champions League win on Tuesday, assisting the opening goal.

Against Forest on Sunday, Madueke was introduced at half time by Arteta and said he took the manager's instructions with him onto the pitch.

"Hang in there, stick to the game plan, go out there and try to attack the opposition, be dangerous, be yourself and be good defensively as well," Madueke said.

He scored with a deflected shot in the 80th minute when he cut in on his weaker right foot.

"I'd beaten him on the outside a couple of times so I thought I'll come inside and just let rip," Madueke said.

It's fair to say that the Arsenal fans have not always taken to Madueke since his move from London rivals Chelsea.

There was a 'No to Madueke' petition started when he joined the club and his performances have been criticised for being inconsistent.

But since his £48.5m arrival, Madueke has helped the club lift their first title in 22 years and played a big part as Arsenal reached the Champions League final.

Madueke scored eight goals and provided four assists in 43 appearances in all competitions last season, but questions over his end product remain.

He is one of Arsenal's most direct players and England manager Thomas Tuchel and his staff also rate the winger as one of the best players in one-versus-one situations.

"Noni, look at me, a smile on my face because he is a special character," Arteta said when he was asked about Madueke's character.

"It's someone that's very much loved in and around the dressing room. The way he connects, talks with people. He is just a special guy.

"I think I saw an interview where they were asking a few of our players 'who would you call if you had a problem?' And some of them said Noni, which I was surprised.

"But I think it is a massive credit and describes the type of person he is."

The 24-year-old has now put in three good performances in a row.

"He is in a good moment," Arteta said. "After the break, he is showing something else, another level of anger, another level of conviction as well as in his actions and he is becoming decisive in matches, which is what we expect from a player like him.

"He is a player that doesn't really mind left or right, but he has played many more minutes on the right side. The team needs him there at the moment and he is doing well."

Arteta has made a big point of referring to his substitutes as "finishers" as he points to the importance of the squad.

That mentality is seeming to have the desired effect. Since the start of last season, Arsenal substitutes have contributed to 26 Premier League goals, which is more than any other side in the league.

Bruno Guimaraes scored the winner against Leeds from the bench last time out in the league while substitutes Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and captain Martin Odegaard played a major role in the last two goals in the win over Lille.

But Arteta is not concerned the Gunners are overly reliant on players from the bench.

"There have been other games as well that we have had to score in the first half," Arteta said.

"We have played 11 competitive matches and we won 10. We are getting a variety of ways to win in many different contexts."

Arteta said he expected few chances against a well organised Forest at the City Ground but added: "I had the belief that the moment the physical level was going to drop, the spaces would be a little bit bigger, the timing more and we would be more efficient there.

"And the finishers delivered because the context of the game changed a little bit."