A few days ago Arsenal were heavily linked with 18-year-old PSG defender Emmanuel Mbemba. At the same time, it was revealed that Arsenal also made enquiries for Elijah Upson and Sam Amissah.

This has got a few people head scratching as to why we are targeting 3 teenage central defenders.

Succession planning and harvesting teenage talents to profit off in the future seems to be the two main reasons why we are targeting the trio, but I actually think there is a much more reasonable explanation – the U21s lack decent defenders.

Per Mertesacker was recently let go as Academy Manager. After some initial great work helping to stabilise the club post-Arsene Wenger, the academy has stagnated.

Whilst we have had high profile players such as Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri break through to the first team squad, on the whole the academy is lacking,. We certainly do not produce the volumes of players to sell on that others do.

Considering we have the footballing breading ground of London, our Academy should be preforming a lot better than what it is.

This season we finished 14th in the PL2 – which was topped by Chelsea, with Manchester United coming 2nd and Manchester City coming 3rd. This is not a great showing for our U21s. We were also behind Fulham, Tottenham, Crystal Palace and West Ham.

The U18s did not fair much better, finishing 10th in the South league behind the likes of West Ham, Crystal Palace, Tottenham and Chelsea.

We have not won the FA Youth Cup since 2009 (Jack Wilshere’s year), and our last showing in the final saw us thrashed 5-1 by West Ham in 2023. Our only other final since we won saw us lose to Chelsea 7-1 in 2018.

We have one of the biggest football talent catchment areas in the world. London is huge and these days scouts from Liverpool, Man City and Manchester United are sent to the capital to try and capture talents. Whilst the senior team might be doing bits, the youth sides are not, and that is a big problem when trying to attract the best players of the next generation.

The issue of attracting the best young players is highlighted by the case of Josh Acheampong.

The 20-year-old defender played 30 games last season and is now being heavily linked to Arsenal as a replacement for Ben White, but questions should be asked why he was not part of the Hale End Academy – Acheampong joined Chelsea at the age of 8 (in 2014), but was born a stones throw from Hale End and went to school less than 2-miles away from our Academy.

16-year-old defender Marli Salmon is clearly a talent, and has been in and around the first team this season. But beyond him, there is not much in defence in the academy – in 28 U18 PL games last season, we conceded 57 goals.

Those currently in the U21s have shown themselves not to be up to scratch at that level and, beyond Salmon, the U18 crop have struggled at their level. Those U18s will struggle further when they go up an age group.

So we would be in a situation where no matter how good our midfielders and attack is at youth level, these players are being undermined and their development stunted by having a poor defence behind them.

With the cupboard so bare, the club has little choice but to go out to the market.

Emmanuel Mbemba is highly rate throughout Europe and will certainly be one that would hope to see some first team training time whilst playing for the U21s.

Meanwhile, Elijah Upson (son of Matthew) and Sam Amissah are both without a contract having decided not to renew with Tottenham and Fulham respectively – it is important to know that they were not released, but instead opted not to sign on. It is likely that Arsenal had a word, and they have decided to join us.

Both Upson and Amissah would be an upgrade on anything we have in our U21s. The pair have played through the England age groups and in Amissah’s case, have been on the bench for senior Premier League games. They would provide a good backbone alongside Mbemba and Salmon.

You never really know how a player might progress, but these guys are certainly being bought to bolster our U21 team rather than to come in for the first team. If they then become long-term options for the first team or generate cash by being sold on, then that is a bonus for the future.

Keenos

Arsenal’s left wing has been a bit of a headache for a few years.

I think we can all agree that whilst Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard are top players, they neither have the quality or consistency to be considered a top, top player. When you compare Bukayo Saka on the right and these on the left, the difference is huge.

In Saka’s worst season (and last season he was poor), he still outperforms both Trossard and Martinelli. To put simply, Saka’s floor is Martinelli and Trossard’s ceiling.

For some years, “a new left winger” has been at the top, or near the top, of Arsenal’s wish list. But the issue has always arisen when the discussion turns to “who?”.

The likes of Rafael Leao, Nico Williams and Rodrygo were on many a fans lips for some time. But neither has really kicked on from being hyped up youngsters and fulfilled their potential. Likewise, I am glad that we did not get tempted to get involved in the Anthony Gordon transfer race. Barcelona can have him for £70million.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is the best left winger in world football right now. Some fans had it in their head that he was obtainable. Earning in excess of £300k a week, playing for the back-to-back European champions, there is simple no reason why he would leave PSG.

For me there are only two other truly world class left wingers alongside Kvaratskhelia. Vinicius Junior and Raphina. One starts for Real Madrid and the other Barcelona. So that sort of rules them out unless something drastic changes (Vini has a falling out or Barca’s financial crisis deepens).

You then have a big load of players in the grouping behind the “big 2”. Senior professionals like Jeremy Doku and Luis Diaz were never going to be targets, and in reality, alongside the likes of Rodrygo, Leao and Williams, they have shown time and again that they are not players who consistently perform at the highest level.

That leaves you with the “next generation” of left wingers. Yan Diomande, Kenan Yildiz, Bradley Barcola, Mika Godts, Said El Mala and Assane Diao.

Recently, I blogged that Arsenal solve their left wing problem by looking at signing someone who could become a future superstar, and not by trining to recruit someone who is currently a superstar. And it feels like we are going to do just that.

Speculation around Morgan Rogers continues to intensify, and it feels like the club has decided that he will be our solution on the left wing.

Firstly, I do have my reservations around Rogers – it all feels too similar to Eberechi Eze.

Yes, Rogers is Premier League proven. He is aggressive, attacking, happy to shoot from distance and take on his opponent. But, like Eze, his best games come more centrally and he has not yet shown consistency over the course of the season.

Rogers turns 24 in July, which would make him 3 years younger than Eze when we signed him. That would give me hope that he still has room to grow whereas Eze was very much the finished article. Rogers is also harder working than Eze and more tactically aware. I feel he might be able to transition better into an inside winger in comparison to Eze. That is a good sign.

So if Rogers comes in, who goes out?

For me, it has to be Leandro Trossard.

Martinelli and Trossard offer two very different styles of plays – Martinelli is super quick, direct and tends to look to beat his man on the outside and keep chalk on his boots. Trossard, meanwhile, prefers picking up pockets of space inside, joining in build up play and looking to get shots off from distance.

Rogers would be a Trossard replacement, not a Martinelli one. That would basically leave us replacing a 31-year-old with a 24-year-old. I am happy with that.

But what for Martinelli?

I have seen arguments made that we need to replace Trossard and Martinelli. But who do we replace Martinelli with?

The likes of Barcola, Gordon (who is Barca bound) and many others who have the same traits as Martinelli also have the same deficiencies – bundles of pace, struggle against low block, not brilliant output. So why sell Martinelli for someone who is about the same level? It is all emperors new clothes.

Others on my watch list, the likes of Kenan Yildiz and Mika Godts, are all more like Trossard or Rogers style wingers than Martinelli. I think we need to ensure we mimic the “one who has raw pace, one who can offer control” that we currently have. And I believe this is what Mikel Arteta wants as well when you look at how he has built the right hand side – Saka with his control, Noni Madueke with his raw pace and chaos.

If Rogers comes in, it rules out many of those who offer the control but not the pace.

I would be happy with Rogers coming in for Trossard to be our first choice winger, and Martinelli being 2nd choice. For a season at least.

Arsenal are also being heavily linked with 16-year-old Jeremy Monga.

Now I have not seen much of him, but despite being the same age as Max Dowman, he has already made 7 appearances in the Premier League and a further 27 in the Championship, 19 of which came off the bench.

I would be a liar if I pretended to have ever seen Monga play. And lets be honest most of the online scouts out there have not seen him live. I have seen a few clips that have circulated online and checked out scouting reports from bloggers that I respect. It all points to someone who is a very exciting 16-year-old and could become a breakout star. But there is a long way to go (as there is with Dowman).

Monga looks big and strong for his age, and combines explosive pace, exceptional dribbling, close control at high speed, and unpredictability. Two-footed, Monga could become that unicorn winger, who offers both the pace on the outside, and technical ability to come inside. But he is a long way from being close to Premier League ready. And this is where Martinelli comes in.

You go into next season with your upgrade on Trossard in Rogers, and Gabriel Martinelli as his compeition. A number of scenarios could happen:

1. Rogers becomes a superstar. One of the best left wingers in the world. You are then happy Martinelli as his back up and we do nothing, allowing Monga to continue his development and replace Martinelli in 2028.
2. Rogers struggles to take his game to the next level and Martinelli continues at the same level. You then look into signing a speedster such as Barcola to replace Martinelli, or go in for Kvaratskhelia, who may be wanting a new challenge after 2 and a half years of winning everything for PSG.
3. Martinelli kicks on again and takes his game to the next level. It then does not matter if Rogers has become a superstar or not. We either have two superstar wingers, or Rogers playing second fiddle to Martinelli.
4. Jeremy Monga has a sensational loan move (I am sure he will spend 2026/27 on loan to a Championship club or abroad), and he replaces Martinelli (if he has failed to up his game).

Either way, I think it is likely that the club will go into next season with one of Trossard or Martinelli. We will not replace both. That will give someone such as Rogers (or Barcola if he replaces Martinelli) a season to show that they are the man to be Arsenal’s left winger for the next 5-years. And in the meantime we will be quietly developing Monga into a player that could become a generational winger.

This summer is about evolution, not revolution.

Keenos