Arsenal may need to call on ‘unplayable’ teen who scored five in one match
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta may need to call upon Ethan Nwaneri following his five-star display for the club’s under-18s at the weekend. The attacking midfielder scored five goals in one game to leave Gunners sporting director Edu purring.
While Arsenal’s first team were suffering a frustrating 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa, their stars of the future were putting on a show at Boreham Wood’s Meadow Park. The young Gunners trailed Crewe 1-0 at half-time of the FA Youth Cup tie.
But they emphatically turned the game on its head in the second half, with Nwaneri the main orchestrator of their success. The 16-year-old drew his team level with a long-range strike just three minutes after the restart.
After Luis Brown put Arsenal ahead, Nwaneri then scored his side’s next four goals. Jack Wilshere’s team eventually ran out 7-1 winners to reach the next round.
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But Wilshere, who previously labelled Nwaneri “unplayable”, may be wondering if he will now see less of him in the coming months. The teenager is already a record breaker, having become the youngest player to ever play in the Premier League last season.
He came off the bench in the 3-0 win at Brentford at the age of 15 years and 181 days. Nwaneri is yet to play a single minute for the first team since that game and has only been in one other match-day squad – the 6-0 Champions League win over Lens last month.
Injuries have restricted his game time, while he was also linked with a move away in the summer. Nwaneri signed scholarship forms in June and will sign his first professional contract when he turns 17 next May, to stave off interest from the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City.
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Arteta currently has limited numbers in midfield to choose from, with Emile Smith Rowe, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira still out injured. He could decide to call upon Nwaneri, with Tuesday’s Champions League dead rubber against PSV Eindhoven a potential opportunity for the youngster.
Edu is clearly a fan of the player and reacted to his performance on Instagram on Saturday evening with several hand-clapping emojis. Arteta has not hidden his excitement about Nwaneri before, saying he knew he was a talent after he “looked him in the eyes”.
Arsenal need to pick themselves up following the disappointment at Villa Park. An injection of youth could be the answer.
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