"We have managed to be competitive without that player," he said, before the trip to Crystal Palace on Monday. "But nobody can sit here and say a player will not score 25 or 30 goals. We just don't know.

"Martin Odegaard scored 15 last season - before that, he'd only get three. We want to encourage our players to understand there is no limit. I am sure we can have players who can score 20."

One man who got off the mark last weekend was Eddie Nketiah, taking advantage of Gabriel Jesus' short-term absence to make his case to lead the line.

The academy graduate scored four Premier League goals last season but his expected goals (xG) was eight, suggesting his play did not get merited rewards.

Is that an issue with shooting accuracy? The numbers say he was only the fifth-most accurate on Arsenal's roster, edging just ahead of Bukayo Saka.

His goals came in a hot streak just after Christmas. With Jesus out, Arteta handed Nketiah his opportunity and he seized it with both hands, until his own injury setback in March.

His goals included two well-taken strikes in victory against Manchester United in January. In that game, Nketiah bristled with threat, having six attempts and five of them inside eight yards.