Mikel Arteta would have been frustrated as Arsenal dropped points once again after drawing 1-1 against Everton.
Arteta slammed the decision leading to Everton’s penalty after Myles Lewis-Skelly and Jack Harrison’s tussle inside the box as Iliman Ndiaye’s equaliser cancelled Leandro Trossard’s opening goal out.
Arsenal already seemed dead set to finish in second place in the Premier League behind Liverpool and their latest result has only increased the Reds’ chances of winning the title — who are just 11 points away from lifting the coveted trophy.
With the Gunners set to play against Real Madrid on Tuesday, it’s safe to say that they are not heading into the most important game of their season in the best possible shape as a side.
But one man who has every reason to be excited about the prospect of starting against Carlo Ancelotti’s side is Jakub Kiwior, with Gabriel Magalhaes sidelined through injury for weeks and Jurrien Timber’s fitness being a concern as well.
Jakub Kiwior’s display for Arsenal vs Everton shows he could thrive against Real Madrid
Mikel Arteta started Kiwior against Everton and he looked the part — which could suggest that he is ready to do a job against Real Madrid and step up to the plate despite Gabriel and Timber’s injuries.
The Polish international started alongside William Saliba and he was arguably Arsenal’s best player on the day as he swept up all signs of danger, especially when tasked to cover ground and defend out wide.
While Arsenal could sell Kiwior in the summer, his statistics from the game emphasised why he remains a quality centre-back — as he was not even dribbled past once, made three clearances, completed 94 per cent of his passes, made one block and created a chance as well.
| JAKUB KIWIOR STATISTICS VS EVERTON | |
| DRIBBLED PAST | 0 |
| CLEARANCES | 3 |
| ACCURATE PASSES | 56/63 (94%) |
| BLOCKS | 1 |
| CHANCES CREATED | 1 |
The 25-year-old was composed on and off the ball and while the confusion between himself and Lewis-Skelly is what led to Everton being handed a penalty, he was largely a solid presence at the back.
Ian Wright fears Kiwior starting against Real Madrid as he worries that the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr could give him the runaround.
But Kiwior’s defending both out wide and inside the box, his excellent distribution and alertness are signs that perhaps he is ready to shine against Real Madrid and prove his sceptics wrong.
Mikel Arteta revealed how Jakub Kiwior feels about playing v Real Madrid
The £20 million (Sky Sports) man could put himself in the shop window with a performance to remember as well.
Bayer Leverkusen are interested in signing Kiwior and so are Napoli anyway.
Arteta revealed Kiwior is eager to face Real Madrid and is up for the challenge.
“Well, the good thing with Jakub is that he’s been very reliable. We need him, he’s always there, he’s available and he does his job. We ask him to play as a left centre-back, as a right centre-back, as a left full-back, so he’s ready, he was with a smile on his face, he was sad for Gabby but he really wanted to play as well and he will be fine.”
“Well, if you ask the dressing room how much they want to play the next two games and the Real Madrid game, believe me, everybody wants to be on that pitch.”
