Mikel Arteta admits he’d be ‘blind’ not to play Arsenal star who has impressed in training

Mikel Arteta is set to hand 15-year-old winger Max Dowman another chance to impress for Arsenal in the Carabao Cup fourth round against Brighton on Wednesday

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has expressed his belief that it would be “blind” to overlook the skills of 15-year-old winger Max Dowman.

The youngster looks set for more first-team action with the Gunners in Wednesday evening’s Carabao Cup fourth-round match at home against Brighton, after being excluded from the club’s under-21 squad over the weekend.

Dowman last played for the senior team in the 2-0 third-round victory at Port Vale on 24 September, following Premier League appearances the previous month in a 5-0 triumph over Leeds and a 1-0 loss to Liverpool.

Arteta is keen to find the right balance as he aims to support the teenager’s ongoing development. “If we looked at his passport every day we would never play him, simple as that,” stated Arteta.

“But when you look at what he does in training you have to play him – if not you are blind, or I’m blind. So it is finding a balance, an understanding, especially the load, the things that are changing in his life, and make sure he can cope with that. So far he has done that.

“He is 15 years old, still growing, a lot of things we have to make sure are under control to make sure he develops in the way he can do.”

At 15 years and 234 days old, Dowman became the second-youngest player to represent the club, behind team-mate Ethan Nwaneri, when he impressed coming off the bench against Leeds.

Last week, Arsenal reached an agreement for the England Under-19 international to sign scholarship terms, which will commence next season.

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Dowman, the promising young talent, could agree to a professional contract with the Premier League leaders that would come into effect when he turns 17. Arteta is eager to secure his long-term future at the Emirates Stadium.

“That’s what we all want and I think what he wants as well, after that it is more for Andrea (Berta, sporting director) and the club,” Arteta shared, hinting at potential squad rotation against Brighton.

“But the feeling that I have is that genuinely he loves it here. He is a huge Arsenal supporter and his family are really happy with the way things are developing around him as well.

“Hopefully for many years he will be with us. Everything that I hear from the player and the family has been very positive.”

Unfortunately, defender William Saliba and forward Gabriel Martinelli will miss the Brighton match due to injuries sustained during Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace. However, Riccardo Calafiori, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka will be available for selection.