Matteo Guendouzi reckons Arsenal have higher expectations from him since he signed.
Arsenal midfielder, Matteo Guendouzi claims that much more is expected of him now from the Arsenal fans because he has proven what he can do.
He joined the Gunners from little-known Lorient in the summer of 2018 and went on to make over 40 appearances for the team in his first campaign.
He was much admired by Unai Emery who played him ahead of the likes of Lucas Torreira and Mesut Ozil at the start of this season.
But he has struggled to get into the starting XI under Mikel Arteta and he maintains that he understands why so much is being asked of him because of his new status in the first team.
Guendouzi will be hoping to win back a starting berth when the team returns from their training camp in Dubai later in the week.
He insisted that he has become a better player this campaign than he was last season and added that he looks forward to becoming an even better player and be counted among the best.
“The fans definitely expect different things from me now,” he told Arsenal Player.
“Right at the beginning, last year, I arrived as a new player, a young player who had just arrived and who was unknown.
“Then, inevitably, my playing well from the beginning last year was something new but I was still seen as a young player and new player that they did not know. Now, I have shown them what I am capable of.
“I have shown them that I can help the team a lot. So it is normal that they now expect a lot more from me, especially as I have played a lot of games last season.
“Then, since the beginning of the season, I have started in numerous games so it is normal that they expect a lot from me. In any case, I will always try to meet [those expectations] on the pitch.
“I think that I have a certain status in the team now. I have been able to show that I can perform well so I now need to be consistent, always help the team, always give it my best and always play well on the pitch.
“I think I improved and that my level increased a lot this year. I really think that I have hit many milestones and moved up a good few notches.
“I am even better than last season. My objective is to always keep making progress and that is what I will do in the years to come, keep on improving so I can be the best.”
He is confident I will give him that but whether he is better this season is very questionable and I suspect opinion is divided on how effective he has been really. It is not as if results have improved. But in all fairness, he does run a lot.