September 13th 2024.
Mikel Arteta, the manager of Arsenal, has hinted that he may include young talent Ethan Nwaneri in their upcoming match against Tottenham in the north London derby on Sunday. Nwaneri made history as the youngest player to ever appear in the Premier League when he made his senior debut as a substitute against Brentford almost two years ago. Since then, he has continued to impress in Arsenal's youth teams and recently signed a new long-term contract, despite interest from other clubs like Chelsea and Manchester City.
The 17-year-old caught Arteta's eye during the team's pre-season tour of America and is now set to join the first team squad. With injuries to key midfielders like Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino, as well as Declan Rice's suspension, Arteta may have to rely on Nwaneri to fill in. When asked about the possibility of Nwaneri playing, Arteta stated, "We have to adapt to changes in the team. Throughout the season, we will face these kinds of situations. It happened very early on, in the second game. We have to face it and use the opportunities given to us by the young kids."
Despite letting go of players like Emile Smith Rowe and Fabio Vieira, who could have been natural replacements for Odegaard, Arteta has no regrets and is satisfied with the size of his squad. "It can be bigger, yes, but we have certain limitations that we know about. We have to do certain transactions and certain players have been with us for a long time and needed a new challenge in their career," he explained. "We have signed a few players, but I am really happy with the quality of the squad. We cannot control everything, and the last two weeks have been extremely unlucky for us. But we have to face it and hopefully, things will be different during the season."
Overall, Arteta is confident in Nwaneri's abilities and believes that the young midfielder, along with other promising young players, can make a valuable contribution to the team. "The young kids have given us a lot of hope and reasons to count on them, and we need to do it for sure," he said. With the north London derby approaching, Arsenal fans eagerly await to see if Nwaneri will be among the players taking the field on Sunday.
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