Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has expressed his admiration for the club’s young talents, following their impressive performances during the recently concluded pre-season tour of the United States.
The Gunners had a mixed pre-season campaign, beginning with a draw against Bournemouth, followed by an impressive 2-1 victory over Manchester United, before concluding with a narrow defeat to Liverpool in Philadelphia.
With several first-team players absent due to extended vacations after their participation in the UEFA Euros and Copa America, Arteta brought 12 academy players along for the tour. A few of these youngsters were heavily involved in the tour
Arteta Impressed With Youngsters
Arteta was full of praise for the young players, stating, “I’m really pleased with all of them. Unfortunately, I wanted to give opportunities to all of them, [but] we didn’t have enough time to do so. But especially the ones that played, I think they performed and responded incredibly well. So that’s something that we take from the tour as well, that we have a lot of talent there that we want to use and they showed that they are very much pushing to earn the right to play with us.”
Among the standout performers were centre-back Ayden Heaven, versatile midfielder/defender Myles Lewis-Skelly, and the exciting Ethan Nwaneri.
Three Exciting Prospects
Heaven, who started the first two games against Bournemouth and United and came on as a substitute against Liverpool, showed good mental strength. He was solid in the game against Bournemouth and had a decent overall performance despite a shaky moment against Manchester United, where he was at fault for Rasmus Hojlund’s goal.
Arteta was particularly pleased with Heaven’s response, saying, “He’s lost a duel against one of the strongest and fastest players in the world. It can happen — but the reaction afterwards, the composure, the quality, the body language that he had were all remarkable. I’m really happy with him.”
Ayden Heavenはボーンマス戦で62分、ユナイテッド戦で45分プレイした。
若干のミスはあったが、彼のスキルはプレシーズンのみならず、カップ戦などで起用するに値する！！
pic.twitter.com/3NJSENpoWk— ニコ (@newnico99) July 30, 2024
Lewis-Skelly also impressed during the tour. Playing primarily as a left-back, the Englishman started against Bournemouth and made appearances from the bench in the remaining two matches. He could be loaned out to get first team experience.
Myles Lewis Skelly vs Liverpool – 20 minutes played pic.twitter.com/oHbyN1tpKj
— 🚶➡️ (@Lhastim3) August 1, 2024
However, the most exciting prospect is undoubtedly Ethan Nwaneri, the youngest player in Premier League history. The midfielder looked sharp during pre-season and is expected to be involved with the first team next season. With Arsenal competing on four fronts, Nwaneri is likely to get valuable game time as Arteta rotates his squad to avoid injuries.
Top talents grab their opportunity and make managers take notice. No one is going to be handed minutes at #Arsenal unless they’re good enough, and Ethan Nwaneri is making Arteta take notice with his intelligence, physicality and maturity. He’s ready. #AFC pic.twitter.com/AhO4vDsj4W
— Adam Keys (@adamkeys_) July 31, 2024
