Alan Shearer delivers ‘amazing’ Ethan Nwaneri verdict that every Arsenal fan will agree with

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There is a huge amount of excitement about Ethan Nwaneri at Arsenal.

Saturday marked a momentous step forward in Ethan Nwaneri’s nascent career, as the teenager bagged his first ever Premier League goal, to round out the scoring in the Gunners’ 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest. 

Introduced by Mikel Arteta as a substitute with around ten minutes to go, Nwaneri became Arsenal’s second-youngest ever Premier League goalscorer, as he connected with a Raheem Sterling cutback and picked out the bottom corner.

This was, of course, a huge moment for the 17-year-old Hale End academy graduate. He opened his first team account in the EFL Cup earlier this season, but to have now found the back of the net in the Premier League represents another major achievement. 

• READ MORE: Every Arsenal academy player to make their senior debuts under Mikel Arteta

Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer make Ethan Nwaneri claim

Understandably, pundits are now paying a great deal of attention to the young midfielder, who looks set to become a star in the future.

Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, former England strikers Alan Shearer and Gary Lineker have now given their verdict on Nwaneri’s potential.

Lineker said: “Wow. He came on, silky little touch, moved it, beat players… They obviously see a lot in him and you can tell. He’s got something a little bit special that young man, hasn’t he?”

Shearer then stated: “Just a bit. He looks an amazing talent for someone so young. His finish was very clever and what a future he has ahead of him.”

Of course, expectations around the wonderkid must be tempered to an extent, but Arsenal fans’ excitement about Nwaneri is understandable. 

Mikel Arteta has perfect plan for Nwaneri at Arsenal

Arteta is aware of the need to be cautious with Nwaneri. After his strike against Nottingham Forest, the Spanish coach was quick to reinforce the message that the player needs be allowed to develop slowly. 

There is clearly a plan in place for Nwaneri at Arsenal, and that involves not burdening him with too much responsibility too quickly. He needs to be allowed to grow into a major role at the club at his own pace, rather than be thrust forward as soon as possible. 

In the long run, this responsible approach will certainly benefit him, even if some fans may become impatient for him to be handed more starts in the meantime. Arteta is proving that he can be trusted to guide Nwaneri towards becoming the player that he has the potential to be.