'Insufficient' - Arsenal star blasted over 3.5/10 performance for national team

The Nations League fixtures are already up and running, and one Arsenal star has already played, returning to action just four days after Sunday’s draw with Chelsea. Leandro Trossard played for Belgium on Thursday evening, with the Red Devils coming up short against Italy.

Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali scored the only goal of the game, leaving Belgium third in their group and with no chance of progressing to the next stage of the competition. Trossard has been in pretty poor form for Arsenal of late, struggling to offer the level of creativity he managed last season, while he notably missed a big chance against Chelsea over the weekend.

Things didn’t get much better for Trossard on Thursday, with one Belgian publication left unimpressed by his performance. Walfoot did their usual player ratings, and they gave the Arsenal star a 3.5 out of 10, reasoning: “If the match had stopped after 45 minutes, Leandro Trossard would have royally obtained 1/10 for the attendance rating.

“Fortunately, his second half, with several inspired strikes and a bit of dynamism, saved the whole thing. This remains largely insufficient for the team’s only creative midfielder.”

Trossard’s response to criticism

Trossard was recently asked about criticism surrounding him and the team, asked whether the Gunners have a more negative approach this season. He responded to the Mirror: "No, we don't have that mindset [defensive tactics] going into games, but every game has a different outcome.

"If you go down to ten men, or you're at a tough place and only 1-0 up, then you have to manage games. We've been really good at that. From the moment Mikel [Arteta] was at Arsenal, it showed that he wanted to play out from the back, get in good positions in the box and play football. There's no instruction to play cautious. It all depends on the game state. Sometimes you have to do that.

"We need more goals. We know that. Everyone is working hard. At one point, it will click. We will do everything in our power to make that time this Sunday [versus Chelsea]."