Bukayo Saka has been branded a 'passenger' by Carlton Cole, while Gilles Grimandi has named PSG star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as Mikel Arteta's dream transfer target

Arsenal's attention turns to Europe after they kept the pressure on Premier League leaders Manchester City with a victory away at Nottingham Forest. Sunday's 1-0 win leaves Mikel Arteta's side three points off the summit, with Noni Madueke's deflected strike securing a valuable three points.

Next up is a trip to the Allianz Arena to face Bayern Munich on Wednesday evening. The Champions League league-phase meeting brings together the English and German champions, with Arsenal having reached last season's final and Vincent Kompany's Bayern making the semi-finals.

A home game against Everton follows when Arsenal return to Premier League action at the weekend. Ahead of those fixtures, Bukayo Saka's form and Arteta's options on the wings are among the talking points. Here, football.london brings you two of the latest Arsenal stories.

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Saka dubbed a 'passenger'

Carlton Cole has criticised Gunners winger Saka by labelling him a passenger in Arteta's starting line-up. Saka, 25, made a promising start to the campaign by netting three goals in the opening games.

However, the forward has since struggled to make an impact and has missed big chances in front of goal. His performances have drawn scrutiny from sections of the Arsenal support, as well as pundit Cole.

After Saka failed to score against Forest, former Chelsea forward Cole suggested the England international is receiving too much protection from his manager and should face competition for his place in the starting XI in the coming weeks.

Cole said on The Dressing Room Podcast: "We have to look at Saka, I'm not sure man, he's not doing it. I think he's a little bit of a passenger at the minute and I hope that he does come good but he's not quite there right now.

"I want him to do well and prove the haters wrong but his position is being questioned right now. You have Max Dowman and as they say, if you're good enough you are old enough.

"He's probably looking at people on the bench, thinking 'How am I not getting on and playing' because he can glide past players. That No.10 role is even his position as well, so he comes on the right but I think he's better in the middle.

"But Saka gets grace all the time and I think it's unfair on the other players because every other player gets called off by the gaffer."

Arteta's 'dream signing'

Former Arsenal defender Gilles Grimandi believes Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is Arteta's dream signing. The Spaniard's pursuit of a world-class left winger is widely known, as he has been eager to strengthen his options for several years.

The Gunners parted company with both Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard during the summer. The expectation was that they would recruit a superstar forward alongside £34m signing Christos Tzolis, who was always intended to be a secondary option.

However, Arsenal were unsuccessful in their attempts to secure several primary targets, including Vinicius Junior and Kenan Yildiz. That has left them lacking the elite forward they wanted this campaign, with both Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke being deployed instead in that position.

Now, Grimandi has claimed that PSG winger Kvaratskhelia is a player Arteta would relish signing, though he acknowledges it is unlikely he will be tempted away from the European champions.

The Frenchman told Goal: "This guy is special. He's special because he's always good in the big games and last season, every time when the competition was getting close to the end, he was getting better and better.

"He has fantastic commitment; he's running, he's defending, and when he gets the ball in the final third, he's very efficient. For me, he's a special guy.

"He looks like he's choosing his games because so far this season he hasn't played too many, but he just knows that he wants to be prepared for the spring time and that's his target. He knows that big games will come. He can play for any team in Europe, of course he can play for Arsenal. For me, he's one of the best players in his position."

Grimandi continued: "I don't think they will do it. Now it's complicated when the guy plays in Paris because they have a huge salary and they do not need any money so it's quite complicated to pick up one of the best players and bring him to another team except if there is a problem."