Arsenal U23 “Best in England”

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It is very easy to get too excited about youngsters coming through.

For every Cesc Fabregas that is a superstar at 18, there is 10 Denilson’s, Aneke’s, Lansbury’s and Emmanuel-Thomas’ who do not move from being top youth player to global superstar.

However, there is plenty of justification to be excited about the future of Arsenal and the young players coming through.

Our recent turn of form under Unai Emery has been built around top quality senior pros, the likes of Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mesut Ozil. But the supporting cast of young players, those under 23, will get you excited for the future.

Whilst the senior team are on a 9 game unbeaten run in all competitions, sitting 4th in the league, the U23 team in the Premier League 2 are currently second, and unbeaten in the last 6 games.

What is incredible about this is Arsenal pretty much have a starting XI of players within the senior set up who would still eligible for Freddie Ljungberg’s U23 team. Some of them you often forget how young they are.

First up is Hector Bellerin. He has not been looked at as a young player for some years, yet he is just 23-years old. He is still amongst one of the best young right backs in Europe. And whilst this is a key season for him, there are not too many players out there who have played 200+ games before their 24th birthday.

Alongside him in the defence could be Rob Holding. Like Bellerin, he is just 23, and surely not too far away from being called up for England?

We then come to Konstantinos Mavropanos.

I am wary of hyping up the 20-year old Greek international based on just 3 Premier League games – one of which he was sent off in – but he looks a powerhouse. Injury has restricted him this season, so we have not yet seen him in the Europa League or League Cup. I would not actually be too upset for him to take a step back into the Premier League 2 side for 6 months just to get some consistent game time. He is a talent.

At left back is Ainsley Maitland-Niles. Not a natural full back and 3 months ago I would have had him in the central of midfield. But as you will see, this side does not lack for midfielders, but does lack for left backs. At 21-years old, Maitland-Niles is a talent. And at worst will have a career at Arsenal as a utility man.

Mattéo Guendouzi is just 19-years old. It is very easy to forget given his performances this season.

Whilst the British media continue to hype up the likes of Mason Mount, Guendouzi is the teenager doing it in the Premier League. The Frenchman is younger and better than Mount. There was talk of him getting a France call up, which would have represented a huge jump from Ligue 2 player to French international. The World Cup winners have a lot of talented midfielders, so it is not a bad thing that Guendouzi is still in their youth set up.

Alongside him in midfield is Lucas Torreira. The 5 foot high from Uruguay is just 22-years old and already looks a world beater. He is younger than the likes of Harry Winks and Nathaniel Chalobah, who were both recently called up into the England squad.

Wide right is Alex Iwobi. Another who is just 22-years old. On the left is Reiss Nelson. The 18-year old currently impressing on loan at Hoffenheim. And between the two is another 18-year old. Emile Smith Rowe.

Leading the line is Eddie Nketiah. The 19-year old is yet to see much game time this season, what with the form of Lacazette, Aubameyang and Danny Welbeck. A second half of the season loan deal could be suitable for him.

We have not had such a large group of quality youngsters come through since 2006. When the likes of Fabregas, Robin van Persie, Gael Clichy, van Persie, Abou Diaby, Mathieu Flamini, Alex Song, Nicklas Bendtner and Emmanuel Adebayor took Arsenal close to the league title in the 2007/08 season having grown up together.

Whilst the current crop might not yet be as good as those names, they have better players ahead and alongside them.

A year of playing together, another year of development, who knows what they could achieve?

Keenos

Arsenal youngster impresses abroad

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It was to huge relief of everyone at Arsenal Football Club when youngster Reiss Nelson put pen to paper finally this summer.

On 31st August, Nelson committed to a new long-term contract at Arsenal before completing a season-long loan switch to Bundesliga side Hoffenheim.

The German outfit are in the Champions League this season, meaning that if Nelson got game time, it would be both at the highest level in Germany and Europe.

Hoffenheim have started this season poorly – winning just 2 out of 7 games and gaining just 1 point from their opening 2 Champions League games. They currently sit bottom of their group, having lost 2-1 at home to Manchester City.

Whilst his playing time so far has been limited – just one start in 4 appearances which he was substituted off at half-time – he has made an impact with 2 goals already.

Nelson is part of a close knit group of successful young England players; including the likes of Jadon Sancho, Ryan Sessegnon, Mason Mount and Phil Foden.

Last year he would have watched on in envy as Sancho began to make a name for himself in Germany, Sessegnon impress in the Championship and Mount be named Player of the Year whilst on loan at Vitesse. Clearly playing time was on his mind as he delayed contract discussions with Arsenal.

Sancho and Mount have recently had call-ups to the England whilst. Whilst it is probably too early for both, it highlights the importance of playing time for development.

Arsenal Wenger used to hold the opinion that 18 – 21 was the most important time for player development, and that during this period it was key to be playing senior football week in week out.

Mount is just 19 and already has 50 senior appearances to his name. Compare that to Ruben Loftus-Cheek who is 22-years old and has played just 60 times for Chelsea and Crystal Palace.

Foden was rated as the most talented youngster amongst his peer group. He won the FIFA U-17 World Cup Golden Ball award in 2017, a tournament that England won with the likes of Sancho and Emile Smith Rowe.

The fact that Mount and Sancho have been called up to the England side shows the importance of game time. They have now moved ahead of Foden in the pecking order, with the Manchester City starlet having played just 31 minutes of Premier League football this season.

Nelson has followed in the footsteps of Mount by seeking game time abroad on loan, rather than sitting in an academy, getting paid to not do very much.

In his fleeting performances for Hoffenheim, he has shown the pace and footwork which many of the followers of Arsenal’s Academy would have known about for some time.

With 2 goals in 90-odd minutes of football for Hoffenheim, it will surely only be a matter of time before he sees regular starts.

In a years time, Arsenal will have returned a 19 year old attacker who has had a season in the Bundesliga. Like Mount and Sancho, he will be benefiting massively from playing.

It will actually be interesting to watch the progress of Arsenal’s two teenage attacking midfielders.

Whilst Nelson pushed for a loan move, Emile Smith Rowe – who is 7 months younger – opted to stay in England, at Arsenal. He has already seen some game time this season in the League Cup and Europa League, but seems some way off starting in the Premier League.

There is certainly space for both Nelson and Smith Rowe in the Arsenal squad next season.

We lack natural wide attacking options. Whilst neither will perhaps be ready to be first choice, you can certainly make a case for them to both be understudy for whoever we play on the wings. Especially with Danny Welbeck set to leave.

The futures bright, the futures Arsenal.

Keenos

Arsenal’s Canavarro ready to become first team regular

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The star of England’s World Cup campaign was Leicester City’s Harry Maguire.

A working mans hero who’s unassuming career took him from Sheffield to Hull, Leicester via Wigan. When you listen to him speak, he has no airs and graces about him. He was never destined to be the next big thing, never hyped up as a teenager.

And that comes across on the field as well.

He works hard, defends well, is not bothered about how he looks or how he plays, just that he plays well. That he wins the ball, clears the ball.

Whilst in England there has been a tendency to pine after a Rio Ferdinand type defender, someone who can bring the ball out of play, Maguire showed the importance of “defending first”.

John Stones is the player who was hyped up as a teenager, got his big money move to Manchester City, and has struggled since.

He is a defender who looks comfortable on the ball, and is certainly style over substance. The paid actually gel well for England.

What Maguire shows, and gives hope to others for, is that you do not need to quick, graceful and flashy when playing centre half. You just need to win the ball, and pass it on to someone else to be the creator. It is a simple but effective way of playing. Straight out of the school of Tony Adams and George Graham.

Rob Holding is this sort of centre back.

He is not quick, he is not graceful, he is not completely comfortable on the ball. But this does not mean he is not a good player.

Holding is strong, aggressive, good in the air. And still just 23-years old.

Arsenal have seen this year in Sokratis about how important it is for a defend to be able to defend first.

For years we have wanted defenders who can supposedly play. The likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Laurent Koscielny and Calum Chambers. But these players are flawed defensively.

In Sokratis and Holding we have two men who know what it means to defend.

Holding should be looking at Sokratis, looking Maguire. About how to keep it simple and effective. How you can become a top defender by defending.

He has now played 5 of the last 6 games for Arsenal, and there is an argument to be made, based on current form, that is should be Holding plus either Mustafi or Sokratis moving forward. Preferably the Greek man.

With Gareth Southgate seemingly speaking experimental England squads – the likes of Marcus Bettinelli, Lewis Dunk, Nathaniel Chalobah, Harry Winks, Mason Mount and Jadon Sancho have been called up for the latest round of games – Holding must not be too far down the pecking order. As long as he continues getting game time and his current form.

Holding, like Maguire, is a simple player. But it is sticking to the simplicity that will make him a top player.

Keenos