Arsenal's Missing Star: The Real Reason Eberechi Eze Won't Face Man City in Carabao Cup Final Showdown

Football can be heartless. Just when Eberechi Eze found his rhythm in what had been a largely disappointing first campaign for Arsenal, he was denied a spot in Sunday's Carabao Cup final against Manchester City due to a minor injury.

Eze opened the scoring in a commanding 2–0 triumph for the Gunners over Bayer Leverkusen with a thunderous strike from outside the penalty area. While the spectacular nature of that goal captured attention, the fact that the summer signing was even in the starting lineup could be seen as a personal victory.

As late as the Carabao Cup semifinal opening leg versus Chelsea, Eze wasn't part of Arteta's preferred starting eleven. The 27-year-old began only one of Arsenal's seven matches following Christmas and remained an unused substitute in over half of those encounters. Nevertheless, after netting twice against Tottenham Hotspur at N17, Eze secured seven starts in eight appearances, with the sole exception being an FA Cup match against Mansfield Town where he entered as a substitute and still managed to find the net.

With Martin Ødegaard remaining out due to injury, Eze was certain to feature at Wembley against City until bad luck struck.

It became overshadowed by his match-winning performance, but Eze was substituted against Leverkusen after picking up a knock. The goalscorer told TNT Sports after the game: "I'm fine, I'll be okay." However, that assessment proved overly hopeful.

Arsenal's Confirmed XI vs. Man City

Starting XI: Kepa Arrizabalaga; Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel, Piero Hincapié; Declan Rice, Martín Zubimendi; Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard; Viktor Gyökeres.

Substitutes: David Raya, Cristhian Mosquera, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli, Christian Nørgaard, Noni Madueke, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Max Dowman.

Arteta Replaces Eze With Rare Partnership

To reference the principle advocated by Argentina's World Cup-winning analyst Matías Manna: "Individual analysis isn't sufficient. The game exists in the connections between teammates." Arteta has been compelled to rely on a highly unusual pairing.

Replacing Eze and lacking the obvious alternatives of Ødegaard or Mikel Merino, Arteta selected Kai Havertz. The adaptable German has only begun two prior matches alongside Viktor Gyökeres; two victories within four days against Kairat and Leeds United in January.

The athletic attributes of Havertz and Gyökeres would benefit Arsenal if they choose to play long balls over City's high press. Obviously, they also provide additional danger from those crucial set-piece situations.