Even though he may not have played all that much football for Arsenal so far this season, mainly due to the excellent form and understanding showed by Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck, Yaya Sanogo has clearly not been wasting his time. The young French striker has obviously been working hard with his Arsenal team mates and learning the art of being a centre forward.
And the France under 21 team has felt the benefits of that work. In both of their games during this international break, the Arsenal forward has captained the team and played the whole 90 minutes. And last night his efforts were rewarded with two more goals, taken in typical goal poachers style, to take his tally to five in just nine games for the under 21s.
It is great news for Arsenal as well, because Sanogo needed the time on the pitch and the confidence as he is still looking for his first senior Arsenal goal. He did score a fantastic four in one game at the pre-season Emirates Cup and had a goal incorrectly disallowed last season, but until he does register that first goal, Sanogo needs all the confidence boosts he can get.
His all round play for France was good, showing strength, speed and a good touch as he held up play and linked up well with the team mates around him. And the England side he was playing against are a very strong side that had not lost in 11 games prior to last night.
So if Arsene Wenger is looking for attacking options when Arsenal resume the serious business of the season, Sanogo’s goals and performances for France will certainly have given him food for thought.