Arteta Vows To ‘Not Look At Age’ When Considering Nwaneri’s Selection

By The Editor
on 4th January 2025

Arteta will treat Nwaneri like the rest…

Mike Arteta has vowed not to let Ethan Nwaneri’s age influence his decisions about whether to hand him more game time after the 17-year-old made his first Premier League start in midweek.

Nwaneri produced a mature performance in our 3-1 win at Brentford as we saw off a side boasting the joint-best home record in the league this season.

As Arteta continues to look for solutions in the absence of Bukayo Saka, Nwaneri slotted in on the right wing and provided the side with some much-needed balance.

The Hale End star is left-footed which is ideal for the way Arteta wants the team to attack and Nwaneri also surprised onlookers by how willing he was to take on his full-back.

Arteta has also highlighted Nwaneri’s ruthlessness in the final third and even mentioned the possibility of the England youth international developing into a central striker.

As the Spaniard decides the team to start the game at Brighton on Saturday, the boss has made it clear that Nwaneri’s age will not be factored into his decision.

“The main thing is: don’t look at his birthday,” Arteta told Sky Sports.

“That’s very important because when you start to look at his age, there’s always restrictions. And it’s not fair on the player.

“It’s what we see daily: how he trains and how he prepares himself, the way the team-mates look at him and how much they trust him.

“When a player is like this, the quality that he has, the understanding that he has and the personality that he has to play, he needs an opportunity and he deserves it.”

With a midweek semi-final clash looming in the Carabao Cup, it would be a big task for Nwaneri’s fitness to start him in three games in a matter of six days.

The teenager has started all three previous League Cup ties and would probably expect to do so yet again as Newcastle United visit the Emirates Stadium.

With Kai Havertz set to return to the squad after missing the London derby with an illness, Arteta will certainly have more options in the forward line.