Smith Rowe may need to leave Arsenal to mature
Days before his 21st birthday, Emile Smith Rowe signed a five-year contract with Arsenal and was given the No 10 shirt vacated by Mesut Özil.
The Gunners turned down a bid of £30m from Aston Villa and Smith Rowe rewarded them with 11 goals in 33 games, his best season. He made his England debut, scored his first goal and might have made the 2022 World Cup but for a groin issue.
He showed on Wednesday a glimpse of that player, but his very appearance was a symptom of the indicator that Mikel Arteta was resting players.
On the opposition bench, Luton Town manager Rob Edwards was hardly celebrating.
“I did camps with him with the U20s when I was at the FA; he was outstanding,” Edwards said. “He was brilliant, I’ve been a big admirer.
“He’s a top player. They’ve got a lot of top players and it’s just unfortunate he’s not been able to get in.”
Smith Rowe won the U21s European Championship last summer, further embellishing his reputation.
“He is a joy to watch, how he moves, changes direction, how physical he was as well,” Arteta said. “I was thinking ‘We’ve missed him to play forwards, make things happen’.
“And when Emile is in that moment, it’s very difficult to stop him and today he helped us a lot.”
But the reality that Arteta would never admit is that Arsenal have evolved beyond him. His 12 Premier League games last season all came off the bench, just like eight of his 11 this season. And where would he start in a game that mattered?
He will not displace Martin Odegaard and does not have the attributes of Gabriel Martinelli or Bukayo Saka. Jorginho is more of a technician and will need replacing with a similar style. Smith Rowe is talented, but he is not that archetype.
At his best on Wednesday, Smith Rowe showed enterprise, winning turnovers. His interception brought Arsenal’s first shot, he made an intervention to deny Luton and triggered the opener. And the 23-year-old (left) only had to look a few yards on Wednesday to learn a lesson in career management.
Ross Barkley was also a highly-rated prospect. He did get his move to a “big club”, Chelsea, but his career stalled. He lost his England place and went out on loan in France. Now he has reinvigorated his career and Edwards says he is one of the first on the teamsheet. He has made himself a desirable asset again.
The heart wants what it wants of course, and Smith Rowe has been an Arsenal player since the age of 10. But he has the chance to skip the wilderness years that Barkley endured. He will need to be brave.
Arsenal might be ready to let him too. If Villa offered £30m again, would the Gunners entertain it more readily? The figure might need to be higher, but there would be a conversation, surely.
The midfielder should not turn his nose up at teams below Champions League chasers Villa. West Ham United were mentioned in January, and he could do a lot worse. Chelsea too made an approach last year.