SAN JOSE, Calif.—Chuba Akpom left Avaya Stadium with the AT&T MLS All-Star Game Most Valuable Player award after poking in the game-winning goal in the game’s final minutes, but don’t expect Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger to lean too hard on the 20-year-old this season.
After a 2-1 victory in the club’s second preseason match, Wenger praised his team’s performance but issued a gentle reminder that the current squad at his disposal is not the same one he will pick from on August 14 when the club opens their 2016/17 season against Liverpool.
Wenger also hinted there could be another attacking addition before the end of the transfer window, music to the ears of Arsenal fans who feverishly track the club’s additions and subtractions.
“I have, at the moment, not too many attacking options of experienced players,” Wenger said in his postgame press conference. “Let’s not forget that we still have a few players at home and a few players who didn’t play today like [Santi Cazorla]. And of course we have [Mesut Ozil] and [Aaron Ramsey] at home. And [Olivier Giroud] is not here. So we have options, but we still look outside to find one more.”
Still, he had to be delighted to see Akpom, who spent the past two seasons on loan at Hull City and Nottingham Forest in the Championship, get on the score sheet in the 87th minute via a centering feed from Nacho Monreal.
Adding to the young forward’s delight was the fact that the goal decided a match that pitted Arsenal against a handful of his childhood idols.
“I was playing against players that I played with on FIFA when I was younger: Drogba, Villa, Pirlo,” Akpom said. “Those are players that you watch in World Cups and big tournaments and just think, ‘Wow, I want to get to that standard.’ It’s nice to share the same pitch as them. I was always learning from them.”
He hopes to replicate their success as well, but first Akpom must break in with Arsenal after spending most of the past three seasons on loan in search of first-team minutes. The most successful spell away from North London came last season in Hull, where he scored seven goals in all competitions while making 36 league appearances.
And while the goal and MVP award are nice, Akpom said he’ll leave his fate this season in Wenger’s hands.
“I’m just working as hard as I can. The boss knows what he’s doing,” he said. “He is one of the best managers in the world, or he is the best manager in the world … My job is just to work as hard as I can and wait for my opportunity. I’ll be patient until I get it.”
