Be excited but remain patient

Serge Gnabry had an unbelievable game against Spurs yesterday evening, wouldn’t you agree?

My dad couldn’t stop raving on about him throughout the 90 minutes and suggested that the young German needs to be playing every week – a view, after yesterday’s performance, which is probably shared by many Arsenal fans.

Undoubtedly, Gnabry, 18, has all the ingredients of becoming a world-class player, if nurtured correctly. But, in my opinion, one classy performance doesn’t make a player – you have to produce week in, week out, consistently to be noticed, and Wenger is inclined to agree.

The Frenchman praised the youngster’s display but insists he must continue to produce similar performances and keep his feet firmly on the ground:

‘Let’s not make a superstar out of him after just one game. The key at the top level is consistency.

‘He has had some good games but today he showed his quality, he had a very good game.

‘I am a strong believer in Serge Gnabry, I integrated him in the first-team at the beginning of the season.

‘I believe the ingredients are there, now all he has to do is show he can produce these performances every week.’

As stated earlier, the kid has got the talent and attributes to become a success at Arsenal. Some even believe, me included, that he is on par or better than the likes of Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

But while many would love to see him become a regular in the starting line-up, the question now is – will Wenger play him frequently?

Gnabry will certainly get some more game time between now and the end of the season, there’s no doubt about that. But I can’t see him in the side week in, week out, especially if more experienced players are made available.

However, many will say ‘if he’s good enough then he should be playing’, but who then do you drop? And, ultimately, can we rely on Gnabry to produce every game? What if he disappoints? Then what?

In my opinion, nurturing his talent is key to him becoming a class act in the near future, and his development shouldn’t be rushed.