William Saliba has compared Arsenal youngster Andre Harriman-Annous to a former Manchester United player.
Harriman-Annous made his senior debut for the Gunners on Wednesday night in the Carabao Cup against Brighton.
Mikel Arteta’s side ran out 2-0 winners over the Seagulls, courtesy of goals from Ethan Nwaneri and Bukayo Saka, setting up a quarter-final tie against Crystal Palace.
The Spaniard will be delighted to have progressed into the final eight of the competition without having to field several key players ahead of some crucial Premier League fixtures.
William Saliba compares Andre Harriman-Annous to Marcus Rashford
Arteta was always likely to rotate against Brighton, although the extent of this rotation would have come as a shock to many.
The Arsenal boss made ten changes from the side that beat Crystal Palace at the weekend, with the surprise inclusion being 17-year-old striker Harriman-Annous.
With Viktor Gyokeres and Leandro Trossard in need of rest, Arteta was essentially left with little choice but to select the Hale End star.
While Harriman-Annous was somewhat muted on the night, he was involved in Arsenal’s second goal, making a well-timed run in behind Brighton’s back-line, before having an effort saved that rebounded into the path of Saka.
For those who weren’t able to witness this heartwarming debut, William Saliba has painted a picture to Gunners fans of what Harriman-Annous was like.
Commenting on the teenager’s Instagram post, the Frenchman wrote, ‘Rashford’.
This comparison was derived from Harriman-Annous pretending to be Barcelona forward Marcus Rashford’s brother to a fan.
He does actually somewhat resemble Rashford, and there were some similarities with the England striker in his running style and in his performance on Wednesday night.
Galloping beyond the Brighton defence with darting runs on numerous occasions, the youngster would no doubt be delighted if he could develop into a player of Rashford’s calibre.
Andre Harriman-Annous should go on loan
Harriman-Annous certainly showed flashes of his talent on Wednesday night.
However, he was clearly still very raw and wasn’t able to physically impose himself against Premier League centre-backs.
He might be competent technically and boast intelligent movement, although it’s clear that he’s had limited experience playing against senior players.
If he’s to continue to develop and to break through into the first team, he’ll need to go on loan within the next year, to play against men in a lower division.
Per Mertesacker will be delighted to see another Hale End star make his senior debut, although he’ll already be plotting Harriman-Annous’ next move.
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