Young guns fire Arsenal
Alan Hansen once famously derided Alex Ferguson’s decision
to trust in youth at Manchester
United before the class of ’92 went onto achieve greatness at Old Trafford.
Nobody at the Emirates Stadium is getting too carried away yet but there is evidence there could very well be a similar youth revolution occurring at Arsenal.
Last Sunday’s (Dec 26) comfortable
5-0 victory against Norwich was the Gunners’ fourth Premier League win in a row which saw them, at time of press, in fourth place in the table and going into the daunting contest with leaders Manchester City in confident mood tomorrow (Jan 1).
The results are testament to manager Mikel Arteta’s convictions in his team’s identity and willingness to trust in youth, which is clearly paying dividends.
Arsenal have had the youngest average
starting XI in the English top flight so far this term at 24 years. Goalkeeper
Aaron Ramsdale is only 23, Gabriel is the oldest player in defence at 24 and 23-year-old Martin Odegaard is finally showing the form that saw him transfered to Real Madrid as a 15-year-old. Next to him is Albert Sambi Lokonga, 22, who has already been compared to Vincent Kompany.
Two academy products, Bukayo Saka, 20, and Emile Smith Rowe, 21, have arguably been the Gunners’ best outfield players this term, something not lost on the manager who himself came through the famed La Masia academy at Barcelona.
“What I learned was that internally there was competition but you understand that you have to look after each other. That was a big, big lesson in that period for me. Those relationships are unbreakable,” Arteta told The Guardian.
Smith-Rowe’s rise has been unexpected yet smooth although Saka endured a testing time after his penalty
miss saw England lose the Euro 2020 final against Italy and a torrent of unpalatable racial abuse come his way.
“What I see is a young boy with incredible enthusiasm and passion for this club,” Arteta said in reference to Saka. “I see it in others too. They are really willing to bring success and they are dealing with a lot of difficult situations in a great way.”
So much so that the absence of captain and senior talisman PierreEmerick Aubameyang, frozen out by the uncompromising Arteta after a series of disciplinary issues, has not been felt in recent weeks.
Brazilian striker Gabriel Martinelli,
20, has stepped in, performed brilliantly
and suggested he has a definite future in the role, whether Aubameyang is welcomed back into the fold or not.
Arteta has confirmed he plans to strengthen during the transfer window but for now is clearly delighted that his young guns are contining to shine and fire the Gunners up the table.