Arsenal are renowned for being one of the best clubs for giving opportunities to young players and Mikel Arteta has continued that tradition by giving out first-team debuts.
Arsene Wenger was never shy to play an inexperienced teenager when the time came. Unai Emery also unearthed Bukayo Saka and Arteta has been pivotal in growing him into a world-class winger. Although Saka himself lauded Freddie Ljungberg for his role in his path, too.
Since joining in December 2019, Arteta has been a constant figure in the development of Saka and, at one point, Emile Smith Rowe in the early stages of their Arsenal careers.
Some fans have grown frustrated with Arteta’s refusal to keep trusting Smith Rowe with minutes, while others have also spoken about the lack of first-team opportunities the manager has given to young debutants.
READ MORE: Arsenal’s youngest goalscorers of all time
While the frustration is understandable, the Spaniard has been known to give youngsters their chance at first-team football. Some players have now left the club after some loan spells didn’t go to plan.
So, Arsenal Insider has compiled a list of every academy Arsenal player to make their first-team debut under Arteta to date…
Folarin Balogun
The rise of Folarin Balogun was largely due to the 2019/20 season he had for the Arsenal Under-23 team – scoring 10 goals with four assists.
Interest from other Premier League teams did come before Arteta gave him his chance behind closed doors in the Europa League against Dundalk in October 2020 as a second-half substitute.
The USA striker was granted three more appearances in that competition, scoring against both Molde and Dundalk, before signing a long-term contract.
Loan moves to Middlesborough and Stade Reims followed before signing permanently for Ligue 1 side Monaco in 2023 for £25.7 million.
Charlie Patino
Having replaced fellow Hale End graduate Smith Rowe, Charlie Patino slotted the ball home in injury time to become the youngest player to score on his Arsenal debut since Jon Sammels in 1963.
Once tipped as the next Jack Wilshere, English international Patino was granted his debut by Arteta in the 5-1 League Cup quarter-final drubbing of Southampton in December 2021.
An FA Cup debut followed against Nottingham Forest a month later, followed by some bench appearances. But loans to Blackpool and Swansea came afterwards for the midfielder as his early Arsenal career stuttered.
Ben Cottrell
After coming on to replace Kieran Tierney to make his unofficial debut in a pre-season friendly win against MK Dons in an unnatural left-back role, Ben Cottrell replaced Smith Rowe for his full debut in the 4-2 victory over Irish side Dundalk in the Europa League group stage.
According to talkSPORT, Cottrell attracted interest from both Borussia Dortmund and Marseille in 2018 as the left-footed midfielder starred coming up through the ranks. But he ultimately decided to stick around at Arsenal to further the midfielder’s development.
Yet Cottrell tore his abductor muscle to rule him out of first-team chances in early 2022. Since leaving Arsenal in 2023, he also had a spell at Mura in Slovenia that didn’t go as planned, although he became the first Englishman to play for the club.
Miguel Azeez
Miguel Azeez joined Cottrell in making his debut in the early Arteta days against Dundalk in 2020, impressing with a slick cameo in the middle of the park.
Another who was tipped for a big future, it has not come to fruition for Azeez after loan spells at Portsmouth, Spanish Segunda side UD Ibiza and Wigan Athletic.
The midfielder finally got a move away from Arsenal in early 2024, joining up with Spanish semi-pro Primera Federacion side Atletico Baleares in a permanent move after over a decade in the Hale End academy.
Ethan Nwaneri
It was an Arsenal record for Ethan Nwaneri’s debut as he became the youngest ever Gunners player, and the youngest to make a top-flight appearance in England. Arteta granted the midfielder his debut as the Gunners took a 3-0 win against Brentford in September 2022.
Touted as the next big thing in Hale End spheres, Nwaneri’s debut at 15 years and 181 days excited fans.
Speaking to Arsenal’s in-house media, Arteta said he had a ‘feeling’ to give the youngster a chance.
“It was a feeling that I had yesterday, I don’t know why,” Arteta said.
“The first day I met him I looked him in his eyes and everyone was telling me about him. Per was telling me about him and because of the injuries, we only have 12 or 13 senior players yesterday to put in the squad and we decided to bring him, and that’s it.”
Karl Hein
After signing his first professional contract in May 2019, Estonian goalkeeper Karl Hein was made to wait for his first-team Arsenal debut. He had non-competitive action against Hibernian during pre-season before making his full debut against Brighton in the League Cup in November 2022.
That debut did not go to plan, conceding a foul in the area that resulted in a penalty that Danny Welbeck converted in a 3-1 loss for Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.
Charles Sagoe Jr
Arteta handed Arsenal academy winger Charles Sagoe Jr his senior debut against Brentford in the League Cup in September 2023.
A loan to Swansea followed a couple of months later, but Sagoe Jr spoke of the pride of his first-team debut in an interview with Arsenal’s in-house media.
“I must have come into training the other day after I made my debut, and the staff, the kitchen staff, the coaches, my teammates, they were all so ecstatic for me,” Sagoe Jr said.
“The love and support that they gave me when I came into the building was honestly amazing and I’m very grateful that they gave me that.”
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