Arsenal have a long and incredibly proud track record of producing some of their best players from their own academy.
Arsène Wenger once said, “we don’t sign superstars, we make them,” and while the club do spend more money nowadays, that still rings true to a certain extent, with Bukayo Saka now being undoubtedly one of the best players in Europe, let alone the Premier League.
Moreover, this season has seen Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly burst onto the scene, with the latter even coming out on top when facing up against Jude Bellingham on Tuesday night.
There are no signs of the Hale End talent factory slowing down anytime soon either, and one of the club’s most exciting youngsters could even be their own Bellingham in the making.
The future of Lewis-Skelly & Nwaneri
Before we get to the youngster in question, it’s worth pondering the futures of their current young stars, Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri.
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The latter didn’t feature on Tuesday night as Saka had made his first start since December, and by the time he was taken off, the hosts were already two goals up and moments away from scoring their third.
However, we’d be surprised if he doesn’t feature in the second-leg or semi-final – if Arsenal get there – as his haul of ten goal involvements from 31 games this year is spectacular.
Appearances
31
Minutes
1198′
Goals
8
Assists
2
Goal Involvements per Match
0.32
Minutes per Goal Involvement
119.8′
The Enfield-born dynamo has primarily played off the right this season, and while we imagine he’ll continue to be the first-choice backup for that role going forward, there is also a genuine chance he spends more time in the middle of the park in the future.
The reason for this is that even though he’s spent so much time on the wing this season, his most played position overall is attacking midfield, and should Martin Odegaard continue to underwhelm in his role as chief creator, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the teenager unleashed there in his place.
The future of Lewis-Skelly, on the other hand, is a little harder to predict, as even though he spent most of his youth career as a central midfielder and is even noted down as a midfielder on the Arsenal website, he has been nothing short of phenomenal at left-back.
The Islington-born ace also won his first two senior England caps in that position, and with Declan Rice one of the first names on the teamsheet and Martin Zubimendi’s transfer looking more and more likely, there is every chance he’ll simply become Arteta’s first choice left-back.
However, even then, the 18-year-old will continue to play an important role in the build-up and attacking phases of play, as against Real, he’d often push up to overload the midfield and use his incredible ball-carrying ability to create chances and chaos for his teammates to exploit.
In all, next season might be another in which Nwaneri slowly sees his game time increase before eventually becoming a regular starter in midfield, whereas Lewis-Skelly looks set to be a regular starter for as long as he remains fit or at the club.
Interestingly, there could be another Hale Ender who breaks into the team next season, a youngster who may well be Arsenal’s Bellingham.
Arsenal's future Bellingham
Arsenal are currently blessed with an abundance of promising youngsters at Hale End, from Dan Casey to Andre Harriman-Annous.
However, when it comes to the most exciting of them all, and the youngster who could be the club’s own Bellingham, there is only one player to talk about: Max Dowman.
Yes, despite still being just 15 years old, we reckon that even non-Arsenal fans will have heard about the young midfielder by now, as that is how highly thought of he is and the level of excitement that surrounds him.
For example, Rice, who has been assigned to mentor him, described him as “the best 15-year-old in the country,” while academy expert Will Balsam went even bigger than that, claiming he has “one of the greatest footballing brains that’s ever come through Hale End.”
While this might all sound over the top, it just reflects how special the teenager could be, and with a first-team debut feeling almost certain next year, this is one of the things that makes him so similar to Bellingham.
The Real Madrid superstar made his debut for Birmingham City at just 16 years old, and should the Hale Ender play early next season, there is a chance he’ll be even younger on debut.
Appearances
18
Minutes
1495′
Goals
9
Assists
3
Goal Involvements per Match
0.66
Minutes per Goal Involvement
124.58′
On top of that, both are central midfielders by trade but can play higher up when needed, with the Gunners ace already scoring nine goals and providing three assists in 18 appearances for the junior sides this year.
Ultimately, while describing a youngster as the next Bellingham could be seen as too much pressure or hyperbole, neither of those things seem true for Dowman, and if he comes anywhere close to fulfilling the potential that so many believe him to possess, Arsenal may just have a future Ballon d’Or winner on their hands.
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