Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has heaped praise onto 17-year-old Gunners ace Myles Lewis-Skelly after he made his competitive senior debut for the club away to Manchester City at the weekend – and immediately found himself in a bit of a scrap with Erling Haaland.
Lewis-Skelly came on as a substitute for Arsenal, and Arteta was asked about the teenager in his press conference ahead of the Carabao Cup game against Bolton Wanderers.
It remains to be seen how often Lewis-Skelly will actually end up playing for the Arsenal first-team this season, but it seems clear that Arteta rates him very highly after using him in pre-season and trusting him as an option from the bench in a big game like Man City away from home.
Arteta praised Lewis-Skelly as an intelligent and versatile player, but also hailed the character he showed as he stood up for his teammates during a clash with City forward Haaland after the final whistle.
Lewis-Skelly a special character, says Arsenal boss Arteta
“He can play in three positions – as a left-back, as a six, as an eight,” Arteta said.
“He’s very adaptable, I think that’s a good thing about Myles. He’s very intelligent, very thorough. And he has a competitive edge that I think is demanded at this level. He really wants it, and we’re going to use him in different positions.
“He’s a competitor, you look at him in every duel … the way he reacts with his teammates, you speak to him and it’s constantly eye contact, he’s asking questions … it’s a special character.”
Arsenal fans will be excited to see a talented player with a great mindset coming through as their academy continues to produce quality all-round footballers.
Bukayo Saka is by far the biggest success story in that regard in recent times, and he captained the side at the Etihad Stadium, but even the likes of Emile Smith Rowe and Eddie Nketiah, who’ve now left the club, enjoyed decent spells in the first-team and should go on to have good careers in the Premier League.
