5 Arsenal youngsters who will be looking to impress Mikel Arteta in pre-season

Arsenal have plenty of talented youngsters on their books right now and we’ve picked out five of them who will be looking to impress in pre-season.

Mikel Arteta hasn’t shied away from giving youngsters a chance during his tenure at the club and pre-season is a great time to test the waters with some new players.

We’ve taken a closer look at some of Arsenal’s top prospects and have picked out five of them who will be looking to impress this summer.

Ethan Nwaneri

Everyone connected with Arsenal is well aware of Nwaneri’s talent – especially after he became the youngest ever player to appear in the Premier League when he made his senior debut.

The 17-year-old has made two first-team appearances so far and will likely be handed some more opportunities during pre-season.

“We are extremely proud of Ethan and his journey, from pre-academy to Hale End, then a seamless transition to Sobha Realty Training Centre and then making his first-team debut,” Arsenal academy manager Per Mertesacker said.

“Ethan’s journey now continues, and we will all be there alongside him to support his development. Ethan has a strong ability to master the ball and dominate possession, this is what we are all about at Arsenal Football Club.”

Charles Sagoe Jr

The dynamic winger spent the second half of last season on loan with Swansea but struggled to make much of an impression.

He only made two substitute appearances for the Championship club before returning to Arsenal ahead of next season. Despite hardly featuring for Swansea, the overall experience will have done him some good.

Sangoe Jr looks like a tidy player at U21 level, but this pre-season will be his chance to prove he can cut it at the senior level.

“He’s a winger. He plays off the right, off the left, he’s played as a nine as well this season quite a lot of minutes so he’s quite versatile in those positions,” Arteta said when discussing the prospect last season.

“It’s great to have him around and see how he develops.”

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Myles Lewis-Skelly

The 17-year-old is undoubtedly one of the most exciting prospects on Arsenal’s books right now. He’s yet to make his senior debut but all the early signs from watching him in youth football point towards him being a star.

With the ability to play as a holding midfielder or at left-back, Arteta could certainly get some use out of the youngster this summer.

Brayden Clarke

Arsenal prized Clarke away from Wolves earlier this year and soon after his 17th birthday, he signed his first ever professional deal with the club.

The centre-half has made huge strides forward over the last few years and he’ll surely be on Arteta’s radar this summer.

“My goals are to perform consistently and hopefully push towards the under-21s after having a good start to the season,” Clarke said after signing his new deal.

“I want to enjoy my football and see where it takes me because it’s a big season for me.

“Seeing players like Bukayo and Emile, it’s really good because they’re at the highest level of the game now. It makes all of us hungry to push there because we know it’s possible.”

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Chido Obi-Martin

The 16-year-old forward scored a whopping 32 goals in 18 appearances in the U18 Premier League last season. Talk about prolific.

On the back of his impressive form, several top sides from around Europe have been tracking the youngster including the likes of Real Madrid and PSG.

It’s thought that Arsenal could look to fast-track him into their first-team ahead of pre-season in order to fend off the interest from elsewhere.

“It helps when you have a goalscorer like Chido who is on fire at the moment, and everything he touches seems to go in,” Jack Wilshere said last season.

“He’s worked so hard over the last couple of years, especially since we’ve had him at Sobha Realty Training Centre over the last six weeks, and he’s getting his rewards for that hard work.”

We’re certainly excited to see more from him in the coming months.