Wonderkid Ethan Nwaneri signs first Arsenal contract

Ethan Nwaneri, centre, has signed his first professional contract to keep him at Arsenal – David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images

Ethan Nwaneri, the youngest player in Premier League history, has formalised his commitment to Arsenal by signing his first professional contract at the club.

Arsenal fought off serious interest from some of the Premier League’s biggest sides to keep hold of Nwaneri, who last year agreed to stay in north London.

Having turned 17 earlier this month, Nwaneri has now put pen to paper on a deal that is believed to be one of the most lucrative contracts ever offered to a youth-team player at Arsenal.

Nwaneri, an attacking midfielder, was only 15 when he made his Premier League debut in Arsenal’s 3-0 win at Brentford in September 2022. He made another senior appearance earlier this season, as a substitute in Arsenal’s 6-0 victory at West Ham United.

The England youth international is the youngest player to represent Arsenal’s first team, and has scored 14 goals in 14 appearances for the club’s academy sides this season.

Per Mertesacker, the former Arsenal defender who is now the club’s academy manager, said: “Ethan has a strong ability to master the ball and dominate possession, this is what we are all about at Arsenal Football Club.”

Nwaneri is held in high regard by the senior players in Mikel Arteta’s first-team squad. Some of those first-team stars actively encouraged Arteta, during the game at West Ham, to throw Nwaneri into the action.

“There is something that you have to have in your team, and that is the trust of the teammates,” said Arteta after the game. “And I had two things: one, the players on the bench whispering to bring Ethan on, which is a great thing to hear, and the other one your teammates want to give you the ball all of the time.

“If they do that, it’s because they really trust you and you only have to see how many times he was involved. So it was a great sign.”

Analysis: Nwaneri is a rare talent among rare talents

Arsenal’s progress in recent seasons has made it harder than ever for talented youngsters to make the step from academy football to Mikel Arteta’s senior team. To play in midfield for the first-team, for example, requires a player to be as good as Declan Rice (£105 million), Kai Havertz (£65 million) and Martin Odegaard (£30 million).

The levels are astonishingly high, and the vast majority of academy players – even the very best players in the youth ranks – will never make it at Arsenal. Indeed, there is an expectation that some of the more exciting young talents of the past few years will probably leave the club this summer.

Nwaneri made his first-team debut 18 months ago at the age of 15 – Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images

It says so much about Ethan Nwaneri, then, that Arsenal were so desperate to secure his long-term future. This is a rare talent, even among rare talents, and there is a feeling at the club that he might have a real chance of making the grade, if everything goes to plan over these next few years.

Nwaneri has already earned the respect of his team-mates, who called for Arteta to bring him on against West Ham earlier this season. They can see, up close, what kind of technical ability and creative talent he brings to the pitch. The Arsenal fans got a glimpse of it, too, when he did make it off the bench against West Ham.

This new professional contract was agreed months ago but the formalisation of it, now that Nwaneri is 17, is an important milestone in the England youth international’s journey.

There can be no telling whether he will ultimately be good enough for a club that is competing for the Premier League and Champions League. To do so, he will need to wring every drop of talent out of himself. But it is clear that Arsenal believe he might one day reach those levels, as Bukayo Saka has done since his own graduation from the academy.

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