In the context of Gabriel Jesus’ ιnjury, Eddie Nketiah delivered an outstanding performance as a substitute in the Arsenal vs Sheffield match. The English forward scored a hat-trιck, helping the Gunners secure a commanding 5-0 victory and temporarily claim the second spot in the table. 

Due to a congested fixture schedule, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta fielded a lineup with several backup players. Captain Martin Odegaard, midfielder Thomas Partey, and defender Gabriel Magalhaes were all absent from the starting lineup. Jakub Kwior, Kai Havertz, and Emile Smith Rowe were trusted to start instead.

With a less-than-strong lineup, Arsenal faced some difficulties in the early minutes but gradually regained control of the game. And then, a nаme echoed repeatedly through the loudspeakers at the Emirates Stadium. That nаme was Eddie Nketiah. The 24-year-old star had an exceptional performance, scoring a remarkable hat-trιck. First, he received the ball inside the penalty area, skillfully controlled it, and fired a shot to open the scoring in the 28th minute.

In the 50th minute, Nketiah capitalized on a chaotic situation in Sheffield’s penalty area to swiftly double the lead. And just 8 minutes later, he completed his hat-trιck. Receiving the ball from Smith Rowe, Nketiah turned and unleashed a long-range shot that found the back of Sheffield’s net.

This was Nketiah’s first hat-trιck for Arsenal in the Premier League. He also became the first Arsenal player to achieve a hat-trιck since the start of the 2023/24 season. The striker has now taken the lead in Arsenal’s goal-scoring chart in the Premier League this season with 5 goals, surpassing Bukayo Saka’s tally of 4 goals.

Notably, before scoring three goals against Sheffield, Nketiah had gone goalless in 9 matches with Arsenal. In a broader sense, he had only managed to score 2 goals in 27 previous appearances for the Gunners. Clearly, he broke his goal drought in a truly impressive fashion.

Nketiah’s superb performance set the stage for a resounding victory for Arsenal. However, he was not the only Arsenal player to have a memorable breakthrough. Fabio Vieira scored his first goal of the season by successfully converting a penalty in the 88th minute, which he himself won.

And in the 6th minute of stoppage time, Takehiro Tomiyasu also etched his nаme on the scoresheet with a quick finish inside the penalty area following a corner kιck. This was the first goal for the Japanese player since joining Arsenal.

Overall, it was a remarkable match for Arsenal, highlighted by Eddie Nketiah’s hat-trιck and the contributions of other players, leading to a convincing victory over Sheffield United.