Arsenal manager Unai Emery has revealed why he went on to withdraw Matteo Guendouzi from the game against Newcastle during the half-time break on Saturday.

The Gunners went into the trip to the Magpies on the back of consecutive wins which came against West Ham at home and Cardiff City on the road.

After what felt like a long international break, Arsenal failed to impress during the first half of the game against Newcastle as the score-line remained 0-0 at the break.

That was when Unai Emery decided to make a tactical substitution which saw him remove Matteo Guendouzi for fellow new signing Lucas Torreira, whom many fans were expecting to start on Saturday.

The withdrawal of the French youngster prompted speculation on social media about various possible reasons why Emery decided to bring on Torreira.

And after being asked about the substitution after the game, the Gunners boss revealed that he needed “a little more balance”.

“I want to give every player confidence. I am very happy with Matteo and also very happy with Lucas.” the Arsenal manager said

“Maybe in the second half we needed a little more balance on the pitch with the positioning. Lucas gives us this balance.”

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