At a Glance:
- Gary Lineker praises Arsenal gem Myles Lewis-Skelly’s showing vs Fulham.
- Explains the difference between Lewis-Skelly and Martin Zubimendi.
- Reveals what he found “interesting” about the Englishman.
Myles Lewis-Skelly was arguably the best player on the pitch as Arsenal dominated Fulham in their latest 3-0 victory.
Lewis-Skelly was exceptional against Fulham as a central midfielder as he came in for Martin Zubimendi on Saturday.
The England international was extremely progressive, sublime on the half-turn, fearless in possession and also domineering in duels.
Arsenal fans lauded Lewis-Skelly’s latest display as he gave the hosts a new flavour in midfield against Marco Silva’s side. A certain Gary Lineker had a lot to say about the 19-year-old’s performance.
Gary Lineker impressed by Myles Lewis-Skelly’s impact as Arsenal beat Fulham
On the latest episode of The Rest Is Football podcast, Lineker claimed that unlike Zubimendi, who is cautious in possession, Lewis-Skelly brought a verve to the Arsenal midfield against Fulham.
“I’m going to throw something in here because I think it’s the fundamental difference between the Arsenal that we’ve seen in recent weeks. No disrespect to Zubimendi but he’s a cautious player, right? He’s a defensive midfield player and he’s the player that predominantly knocks it back.
“I thought Myles Lewis-Skelly came in, in a midfield position, not left-back that’s moving in a midfield position and his first thought is to turn and look forward and quickly. And I think that really enabled Arsenal to get it forward quicker.”
What Gary Lineker found “interesting” while watching Lewis-Skelly, who shone against Fulham was how much of an impact he had as a midfield on potentially Arsenal’s best performance in ages.
“And obviously, it was a bit of a plan to push the wingers higher and Saka was getting the ball in time to actually take someone on and I think he made a fundamental difference and that’s quite interesting because he’s a young player, we’ve known him as a full-back.”
Lineker concluded: “But in that midfield area, I think the way he was so positive and looking forward…we know what Rice is, Rice is a different kind of player in the sense that he’s probably at his best when he’s running with the ball. But he’s not really a player who tends to look for forward passes, particularly quickly either. So, I think he really helped them.”
Myles Lewis-Skelly stats in Arsenal vs Fulham
Lewis-Skelly will feel honoured that an English legend like Gary Lineker heaped praise on his exploits in an Arsenal shirt against Fulham.
However, it is difficult to dispute how instrumental the wonderkid was in Mikel Arteta’s side playing free-flowing football.
The stats justify Lineker’s glowing assessment of Lewis-Skelly.
| Myles Lewis-Skelly vs Fulham | Stats |
| Accurate passes | 64/66 |
| Chances created | 1 |
| Duels won | 7/11 |
| Dribbled past | 0 |
| Touches | 78 |
Out of 78 touches, the Arsenal wonderkid completed 64 out of his attempted 66 passes and created a chance but he was excellent out of posession too.
Lewis-Skelly was also not dribbled past even once while winning seven out of his 11 duels.
