Emmanuel Petit sends warning to Arsenal over Emile Smith Rowe
Emmanuel Petit has a word of warning for Arsenal about their young midfielder Emile Smith Rowe
Emmanuel Petit has warned Arsenal that they need to demonstrate their ambitions to Emile Smith Rowe after Aston Villa were linked with a move to sign the Gunners midfielder.
The 20-year-old earned lots of praise for his performances for the Gunners last season as he helped Mikel Arteta’s men to finish in eighth place in the table.
Smith Rowe scored two goals and made four assists in 20 Premier League games for the Gunners last term and he also netted one goal and made three assists in 11 Europa League games.
The midfielder is out of contract at Arsenal in the summer of 2023 and the Gunners are yet to tie the midfielder down to a new contract.
Aston Villa have been credited with an interest in landing Smith Rowe this summer as they look to strenghthen their squad ahead of the new campaign.
Former Arsenal star Petit has now insisted that he is not surprised about the speculation and says it is up to the Gunners to resolve the midfielder’s situation.
Speaking in an interview with Metro, Petit said: “As a club, you need to show your players that you are ambitious.
“In terms of improvement, competition and ambition, it’s very important to send them a signal. Arsenal have been sliding down the table for five or six years.
“When is it going to finish? That means if I am an Arsenal player, I will be very conscious about what the club is doing in the market, who are the new players, who is leaving the club, and in the end I’ll make a conclusion.
“If the club is spending money on good players with character, maybe that shows they want to send a signal to the team that this season will be different to the last few seasons. That they want to get back to the level they were at before.
“Players will look at that and compare with other teams, then make a conclusion very easily. If Arsenal don’t have the team to compete for the Champions League positions, it’s going to be the same as last year and the year before.
“Emile Smith Rowe is not stupid, he will be looking at guys like Mason Mount, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish enjoying their football with the national team, all smiling on the pitch and very relaxed with the pressure and the ambitions of their clubs and the national team. Smith Rowe will want to be the same.”
