Leandro Trossard silenced his doubters yet again with another crucial contribution for Arsenal at the weekend.
The Belgian's 58th-minute strike, arriving to convert Bukayo Saka's flicked-on corner at the far post, secured a 1-0 victory for the Gunners in a challenging encounter against Fulham to guarantee they would end the weekend atop the Premier League. It brought Trossard's goal involvements this season to five across his nine appearances - the highest tally of any Arsenal player.
Being selected by Mikel Arteta to start each of the last five fixtures across all competitions is a testament to his excellent form, despite all the uncertainty surrounding his future at the campaign's outset. Arteta didn't hesitate to laud the 30-year-old's influence for Arsenal after the match, highlighting him in particular.
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He said: "Leo has this quality to create these magic moments when the team needs it the most, and that intuition that he's in the right place at the right moment is a huge quality for the team and a massive weapon for us. He's been very, very good in recent weeks and now we have a lot of players in a really high emotional state and performance level, which is really good to see."
The Spaniard's remarks stood in sharp contrast to his criticism of the player this time last year, when Trossard was enduring a sustained period of poor form. He started last season with a controversial yet unnecessary red card at Manchester City, before his errant backpass against Bournemouth forced William Saliba into making a tactical foul on the halfway line, resulting in the Frenchman's dismissal.
In the subsequent match, a slender victory in the Champions League league phase at home to Shakhtar Donetsk, he squandered a second-half penalty and recklessly surrendered possession twice on the edge of his own area within the space of just a few minutes. A furious Arteta spun round to his bench and held up two fingers, whilst bellowing: "That's two times!"

Trossard proceeded to register 10 goals and 10 assists across 56 appearances. Neither he nor Gabriel Martinelli staked a compelling case for the left wing berth, however, with both suffering extended periods of indifferent form, frustrations only heightened by Saka's dazzling displays on the opposite flank.
By the campaign's conclusion, there was mounting agreement amongst supporters that the Gunners required a world-class left winger to arrive and claim the position as their own. Trossard may have feared losing his squad place entirely when the club secured high-profile summer acquisitions Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke, both of whom were anticipated to earn game time on the left.
There was even talk of the Belgium international potentially leaving for Italy or Turkey, something he recently dismissed by saying: "There are always rumours like that. Leaving has never really been an option. I feel very good at Arsenal."

However, following his recovery from an early injury, Madueke's unavailability and Eze's inclination to play centrally has allowed Trossard to experience somewhat of a revival over the last six weeks or so. Most significantly, he has maintained his knack for delivering crucial strikes.
His propensity to find the net from the bench, including the decisive strike against Athletic Club last month in the Champions League, has landed him with the perhaps unwelcome label of 'super sub'. In fact, Trossard has contributed to more goals as a substitute than any other Premier League player since his arrival at the club in January 2023 for an initial £20million plus £7m in add-ons.
Nevertheless, his overall contribution continues to be undervalued, having featured in the most matches for Arsenal last season with 56 outings, highlighting what a dependable player he proved to be for Arteta despite the disappointing campaign conclusion. Only Saka has registered more goal contributions (74) than Trossard since his arrival, with the Belgian recording 31 goals and 25 assists for the Gunners across 133 appearances.
If he maintains this form, Arteta will continue to rely on him for crucial moments, even when his overall play doesn't quite match the standard of some of Arsenal's more standout stars, as the Gunners aim to end their lengthy wait for a Premier League title.
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