Arsenal has been rocked by injuries to key players in this campaign and that has forced Mikel Arteta to promote more youth team players to the senior squad.
The Gunners remain in the hunt for a top-four spot and have suffered setbacks in their last two matches.
Apart from losing to Crystal Palace and Brighton, they have also lost some players to injuries in the last month.
Because they have one of the smallest squads in the league, this has affected their numbers even in training.
Football London claims Mikel Arteta has reacted to that by promoting some youngsters from the club’s academy to the first team.
It claims Mazeed Ogungbo, Charlie Patino, Miguel Azeez, Lino Sousa and Marcelo Flores have all been invited to train with the senior squad ahead of the Premier League game against Southampton at the weekend.
Among these players, Patino has played for the Gunners in the Carabao Cup this season, while Azeez spent the first half of the campaign out on loan.
They will hope to impress enough to earn a place on the bench in the fixture against the Saints.
Just Arsenal Opinion
We have been famed for developing young talents, and each of these players will be keen to get their break.
They will see Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe as inspirations, and this is their chance to impress the senior team coaches.
The game against Southampton is a must-win match, and there might be no room to field an inexperienced player.
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None of our academic products has been given chance regularly in the first team football apart from the names of those who appears before Arteta was appointed.
Saka, nketia, and Esr were in the team before arteta. Promoting them is one thing, but giving them the chance is other thing.
The likes of Wenger and Emery gave them multiple chances despite the heavy squad we had.
Can’t remember anyone in this Arteta era so far.
It’s more than just giving them a chance, it’s coaching them and trying to get them prepared for the challenges of first team football.
Arteta was marketed as some kind of whiz when it comes to developing young players, that was part of the hype when he was at City.
Unfortunately, that has not turned out to be the case. Martinelli and Saka were contributing before Arteta came, ESR only got time due to injuries. Guendouzi and Saliba loaned, and even though Lokogna and Tavares have been here all season, can anyone say they have seen development under Arteta?
Nketiah has not been able to improve, despite being with the team since Arteta joined. No one expects him to get all the youth firing, but can anyone point out any of the youth he has developed? One could argue that even some veterans have regressed under Arteta.
Who has Arteta given the famed development from youth to first team too?
I ain’t trying to justify Arteta but I really don’t believe it’s that easy to bring in the teenagers at a time when we trying to get back to winning ways, besides some of this boys played in the cups, so you can’t say Arteta didn’t give them playing time,
Nketiah and Reiss shouldn’t be on the discussion board, they’ve been given more time than any other, yet nothing to show,
Patino isn’t ready, he’s too lightweight,
Arteta seems to have he’s own way of developing players by sending them on loan and it’s paid off, if truly this boys were outstanding, a lot of clubs should have come knocking, so far it’s been only Saliba,
I hope we all know during loan periods this boys aren’t coached by Arteta, so you see, every player is been paid and has a role to fulfill, Arteta can’t spoon feed them all, you have to find your feet, your own motivation.
I really feel Miguel Azeez is ready,
Longbenark, How dare you write a balanced piece!! Don’t you realise that the vitriolic anti MA brigade won’t accept balance at any price.
It shows how immature they are, so please dont be so “cruel” to these “poor children” ever again!
That’s why i called them the ‘insatiable lots’ but adie had my post deleted.what’s foul in that i don’t know.
Well, if Arteta hadn’t sent half a team out on loan, given players away and actually bought replacements, we wouldn’t be in the position of having to promote FIVE untried players to the first team squad, as we try to wrestle that top four spot back.
Out of these only Azeez and Flores seem to be of the quality to play in the PL, the rest will require some more time to develop. Lets see how it works out.