Matteo Guendouzi remains a player of focus for Arsenal and ex-Gunner midfielder Ray Parlour has reiterated his desire to see the Frenchman knuckle down to realise his potential at the Emirates Stadium.
After being left out of Mikel Arteta’s last two matchday squads following a clash with Neal Maupay in the closing stages of a 2-1 defeat at Brighton on June 20 there has been speculation over where he sits in the pecking order.
Guendouzi avoided retrospective punishment after grabbing Maupay around the neck, although it seems Arteta may have been less than impressed with his actions, having left him out completely against Southampton and Sheffield United in the FA Cup.
And Gunners legend Parlour had some advice for the 21-year-old as he looks to get back into the good books with his manager, following up on an exclusive interview with football.london ahead of Arsenal's win over Sheffield United at the weekend.
"You’ve got to learn from your mistakes," said Parlour. "I made plenty when I was young but I got to the stage where I thought, 'I’ve got to grow up now. I’ve got to be more professional.'
"People like Dennis Bergkamp were training so much harder. I’m sure they’ve got some excellent professionals [at the club now], older players who Guendouzi can look at and say look how he trains, look how he prepares himself. Someone like Xhaka."
Parlour though still believes Guendouzi is part of Arteta’s plans, despite speculation the midfielder’s future could be in doubt.
"Arteta has a lot of respect in that dressing room," he added. "And Guendouzi will look at the player Arteta was - a very good defensive midfielder - and that will be a plus point in terms of getting the message across. You have to show authority as a manager.
"I know for a fact that Arteta talks to a lot of players individually and he wants to see their character and how they respond to criticism and problems. He might have thought it was time to leave him out on this day, Xhaka was back and played well.
"He’s a young lad, he’s going to make mistakes at time and he has to learn from them. From what I’ve seen from him at his age, he’s a very interesting player and he could be a good asset for Arsenal going forward."
