Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta insisted Ethan Nwaneri made his full Premier League debut in Wednesday’s win over Brentford on merit and not as a result of illness taking hold Gunners team.
“(It’s great to see him play with that courage and that determination. He played in that position not because of the mistake. It was a decision I made because I thought he was the best player to start the game,” Arteta said. explained
But there was another factor that also came into play naming the 17-year-old to the lineup.
Nwaneri made history in September 2022 when he came off the bench in a match against Brentford to become the youngest player to arsenal and English top-level history, at 15 years and 181 days.
So handing the youngster his first league start against the same opposition at the same stadium was something Arteta saw as natural.
“It was a story with him making his debut here and then making his (full) Premier League debut Sometimes that feeling comes along and you feel like it’s the right one,” the manager said.
“Part of that development is the patience to manage the frustration and the expectation because you expect everything to go as fast as the previous things, but it doesn’t. So now we’re building him up, he’s played a lot of games and he deserves that “.
Nwaneri could end up getting a longer Arsenal career while Bukayo Saka is sidelined by injury until at least early March. After traveling to Brighton, the Gunners quickly face Newcastle United in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final, before hosting Manchester United in the FA Cup third round three days before the northern derby London
There are also two more Champions League games to play before the end of January, a month which will see Arsenal take to the pitch nine times.
