Arsenal youngster Eddie Nketiah insists his difficult spell on loan at Leeds last season has helped make him a better player.
Nketiah is proving an important member of Mikel Arteta’s squad at The Emirates this term, registering five goals in 21 appearances for the club so far.
Arteta is certainly an admirer of the 21-year-old striker, recalling him from his loan spell at Leeds early halfway through last season and handing him 17 appearances in the second half of the campaign.
Nevertheless, that decision was partly down to his struggles at Elland Road, where he netted just five goals in 19 games.
United boss Marcelo Bielsa only handed Nketiah two starts in the Championship, with Patrick Bamford’s stunning form for the eventual league winners meaning he was often left on the sidelines.
Yet the Gunners academy graduate does not regret his loan switch to Yorkshire, crediting Bielsa with helping him improve both with the ball and without it.
“I’m grateful for my time at Leeds,” Nketiah told talkSPORT.
“Bielsa is a very demanding manager, so every day I was pushing myself to the limit in training, and I feel that mentality has stuck with me at Arsenal, to always give my all in training and in matches.
“I also learned a lot defensively off the ball with the way Leeds play, I learned a lot about the importance of pressing from the front, defending from the front and the impact it can have to the team and the way we play.
“I definitely learned a lot, I put myself out of my comfort zone which was a good thing for me, it’s made me a lot stronger mentally and has improved me as a player.
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“I’m grateful for my time there.
“Obviously things worked out for me in the end with coming back to Arsenal, so I’m grateful for the experience I had and I feel like it made me a better player and a better person.”
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