Arsenal have landed in Germany ahead of their pre-season tour with Mikel Arteta keen to get a good look at some of the club’s younger talents.
The Gunners currently have five pre-season friendlies scheduled before their Community Shield clash with Manchester City on 6 August, facing the likes of Barcelona, Manchester United and Monaco as the players are put through their paces.
Pre-season is always an exciting time for supporters as they get their first glance of new signings, as well as some of the club’s most promising academy prospects. While Arsenal have picked a strong squad to travel with, there will still be plenty of opportunities for young talents to make their mark.
Here are five of the youngsters expected to impress Arteta during pre-season.
We are now reaching the depressing point in football where players born in 2007 are making their debuts at senior level. That’s the case for 16-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who made an admittedly brief appearance for Arsenal in the early part of last season, making him the youngest player in Premier League history.
The young attacking midfielder rejected contract offers from some of the world’s biggest clubs to sign a new deal at the Emirates, a perhaps underrated piece of business amid the Declan Rice and Kai Havertz fanfare.
Arteta explained it was a “gut feeling” to offer Nwaneri his debut against Brentford last term, a feeling which may become increasingly difficult to ignore should Nwaneri impress during pre-season.
Known for his skill, technical quality and impressive left foot, Nwaneri helped the Gunners to the FA Youth Cup final and has impressed with England, scoring eight goals in 17 games at Under-17 level.
Known for his versatility, Walters is traditionally an attacking right back but also has experience playing at centre back. Standing at 6’0, it’s easy to see why the 18-year-old is comfortable across the defensive line for the Gunners’ youth teams.
Walters appeared on the Arsenal bench nine times across the Premier League and Europa League last season, albeit not managing any minutes. However, it shows the faith Arteta has already placed in the youngster who will be desperate to impress the Spaniard further in pre-season.
A man with a growing catalogue of experience in English football, Marquinhos remains one to watch closely at just 20 years old.
Having arrived from Sao Paulo last summer, the Brazilian managed a couple of senior appearances for Arsenal, playing six times for the first team in various competitions. Three of those came in the Europa League group stage where the right winger did manage a goal and assist against FC Zurich.
Marquinhos spent the second half of the season on loan at Norwich City in the Championship, making an impressive debut against Cardiff after scoring and setting one up in a 2-0 win. However, while making ten further appearances for the Canaries, the youngster struggled to make an enormous impact.
Having been at the club since the age of nine, there is the sense Lewis-Skelly has all the makings of a top central midfielder. Usually deployed in a deeper holding role, the 16-year-old is capable of making forays forward, scoring two and assisting four last season at youth level.
Labelled “unplayable” by Under-18s coach Jack Wilshere, someone who knows the pressures of breaking through at Arsenal, Lewis-Skelly has also made 17 appearances for England Under-17s.
Arteta will surely have received word of Lewis-Skelly’s impressive performances from Wilshere and the wonderkid is one to keep an eye on in pre-season.
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While there is no evidence suggesting Sousa has travelled with Arsenal on tour, the youngster is still definitely worthy of keeping tabs on over the summer period.
Born in Portugal but representing England, Sousa is an 18-year-old left back who arrived from West Brom’s youth setup in January 2022. Described as an “athletic full back” who “reads the game well” by his former West Brom coach Paul Gilbert, Sousa may fancy his chances of making an impression on Arteta this summer should Kieran Tierney leave.
At a little over 6’0, Sousa could potentially be converted into a left-sided centre back further down the line, especially if he hasn’t finished growing just yet.
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On this edition of The Chronicles of a Gooner, part of the 90min podcast network, Harry Symeou looks back at Arsenal’s first friendly of the summer against Watford. We discuss when we can expect announcements for Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber, Kai Havertz making himself at home and take some of your questions from the live chat!
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