Mikel Arteta's side beat Sunderland 5-1 in the Carabao Cup quarter-final at the Emirates Stadium.
Arteta gets a lot of pleasure from Nketiah, but she also gets a lot of pain from him.
After all, Mikel Arteta may have a reason for wanting Eddie Nketiah to stay...
The Spanaird has been unusually forthright in expressing his desire to persuade the 22-year-old to stay at Emirates, but most people haven't seen what all the fuss is about.
Yes, he was a fantastic goalscorer at the youth level for both club and country, but he has been found wanting at the senior level.
Things appear to be shifting this season.
Nketiah has five goals in three Carabo Cup appearances this season, the best of which was a hattrick against Sunderland on Tuesday night - each goal seemed to get better with time.
Many will argue that Nketiah already had his chance to shine in the first team when the Hale Ender was recalled from a loan spell at Leeds and thrust into the Premier League side ahead of Alexandre Lacazette at the start of Arteta's reign.
Take a look at how far Arsenal has progressed since then.
The Gunners spent much of the early part of Arteta's reign in their own half, transitioning into the final third at a snail's pace as they attempted to break down opposition defenses with a careful and considered build up.
Arsenal have recently been a team that starts the attack far higher up the pitch and spends more time near the opposition goal as a result of having almost entirely different players and much more confidence, barring a hiccup against Everton.
Nketiah is a 'fox in the box' striker, but it's difficult to be one when your team isn't even close to the box. We're seeing what the 22-year-old can really do now that Arteta has his team operating in the attacking end of the field on a more regular basis.
Perhaps this explains why the Spaniard is so eager to keep the young centre forward, a desire he expressed in his post-match press conference on Tuesday.
"I tell you every day," he said, "that we want to keep Eddie."
"We see how he trains; that's what he does every day; he works extremely hard and consistently puts the ball in the net." I'm extremely pleased with him. He has always responded whenever we have needed him."
The only way Arteta appears to get his wish is if he gives Nketiah regular first-team minutes.
The 22-year-old is nearing the point in his career where he can't afford to wait any longer and requires consistent game time if he is to mature at the senior level.
With Lacazette in good form, it's hard to see that happening anytime soon, but keep in mind that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - remember him? - is set to leave for the AFCON at the end of the month, which will move Nketiah up the pecking order.
Because the Frenchman will be unable to play every game during the hectic festive and January schedule, another Arsenal academy product may be given a chance in the first team.
If this occurs, it will be fascinating to see how the England under-21 international performs in the Premier League, where he should be able to thrive, in order to fully understand why Arteta is so adamant about keeping him.
Patino Nketiah was undoubtedly the evening's star, but on a night when Emirates fans attempted to recreate a clear Christmas night by lighting phone torches throughout the stadium, it was youngster Charlie Patino who shone brightest.
Arsenal fans were singing his name to the tune of the White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army' before he even came on, a chant that you get the feeling we'll be hearing a lot more of in the future.
The 18-year-old was brought in as a number 10 instead of his preferred deeper lying midfield position. It was because of this freedom to move forward that he was able to stride into the box and stab home Nicolas Pepe's cutback on a bitterly cold night.
Left back for the Black Cats Denver Hume will have nightmares about the two times he was nutmegged by the Ivorian, but with two assists and a goal, it's fair to say he had a productive evening on the attack.
Mikel Arteta, on the other hand, seemed to see things a little differently on occasion.
During the first half, the Spaniard could be seen yelling at Pepe to get in the right position to press a Sunderland goal kick.
He wasn't the only one who was annoyed by the Ivorian.
With the score at 2-1, England international Ben White was forced to come across to put out a potentially dangerous situation for a corner and yelled to his teammate, "F***ing hell how is getting it there." Nico, please get the ball and play it."
On Tuesday night, Pepe's usual traits of defensive lapses and possession overplaying were on full display in the final third end product, demonstrating almost certainly why he is not currently a first team starter.
Arteta didn't seem sympathetic to the Ivorian's recent plight after the game, saying that it was up to him to fulfill his current role in the squad, even if it wasn't a regular first-team player.
blogpay
