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Since Arsene Wenger departed from Arsenal at the end of the 2017/2018 season, the Gooners have lacked a side that plays for the badge, however, under Mikel Arteta, shades of the old Arsenal are starting to return.
This story is by no means over, but looking back to 10 months ago, the story might not have even had a chance to develop. With fans showing major discontent towards the board, the players and the manager, things looked like they could change at the Emirates.
As for the top of the club, a rumoured ownership switch to Spotify CEO Daniel Ek meant the Spaniard’s future at the club was up in the air.
Fast forward to the end of gameweek 19 and the fans, as well as the board, will be glad a rash decision made on the future of Arteta wasn’t made, with the 39-year-old now playing a major role in improving the club’s future by way of extensive trust in youth players.
When English academies like Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool come to mind, these setups are hailed amongst the media. The same can’t be said for Arsenal’s Hale End system, however.
Despite this, in recent years the academy led by former player Per Mertesacker has produced the likes of Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith-Rowe, Eddie Nketiah, Joe Willock and Reiss Nelson.
The youthful project doesn’t just stop at those coming through the academy, as in the summer window Arteta and his scouts targeted budding prospects rather than some of the more experienced signings the club has made in windows past.
Aaron Ramsdale, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White headline the prospects that Arsenal secured in the summer, showing a clear and defined plan under Arteta.
Allowing his managerial style to develop over a longer-term period, while also influencing these younger prospects bodes well for the North London side, who have enjoyed a resurgence in December.
Whilst the start of the season saw a poor run of results for the side, Arteta’s men came back from the September international break looking reinvigorated, with younger players starting to write the headlines.
More recently, controversy has been the main headline regarding one of Arsenal’s most experienced players. Captain Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang had his captaincy stripped for failing to show the commitment and passion needed to play for the club, let alone captain it, but more on that later.
This has since followed shouts for new addition Ben White to take the armband, with the former Brighton player stating:
“I’ve never done it before, but it would obviously be an absolute honour to be captain. I think I’ve got some of the qualities to be captain, but we’ll see in time.”
It is clear to see why White is being thrown into the captaincy pool by supporters, as the 24-year-old has played 17 of the Gooners’ 19 games and kept nine clean sheets, evidently the focal point of Arsenal’s young backline.
On the other end of the pitch, in the absence of their former captain and talisman, overall disappointment towards Alexandre Lacazette continues. Arteta’s frontline has undoubtedly lacked a ‘main striker’ as such this campaign.
This has resulted in Arsenal looking to their youth and whilst there were parts last season where these players featured, it looks as if they know they have the utmost faith from the fans and manager alike.
Looking at the past five games in the league, the side has scored 15 goals, nine of which have been from emerging talents like Gabriel Martinelli and the often chanted, and aforementioned, Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe.
To put this into a wider source of data, Arsenal this season (including Sunday’s dismantlement of Norwich) have scored 32 goals. 17 have been scored by the above trio alone, collating to 53% of the side’s goals this season.
In addition, considering the percentage of goals scored by players under the age of 25, this number rises to a staggering 75%. With a squad age of 25.3 (the lowest in the Premier League this season), and their highest average age of a matchday squad being 25.1, it certifies the faith instilled in youth by the manager.
The key and final evaluation of Arteta’s squad is that the drip-feed of young, talented, and hungry players doesn’t seem to have a stopping point just yet. As mentioned earlier regarding the current absence of a starting striker, and while the following suggestion may be far-fetched, Gunners fans can’t stop raving about this kid.
The most likely to come into fruition over the next 12-18 months is Folarin Balogun, the 20-year-old who has two Premier League starts from the start of the season and is heavily linked to more than half of the Championship clubs for the January window.
However looking even further to the future, 18-year-old Charlie Patino and 20-year-old Tyreece John-Jules are also said to be the next big things with Patino scoring on his debut in the Carabao Cup against Sunderland, and John-Jules being touted by Lincoln City manager Michael Appleton as, “Arsenal’s number nine in the future.”
The future is very, very exciting and Mikel Arteta and his young Gooners might just have what it takes to resubmit Arsenal into England’s elite.
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