Arsenal talent who made his debut alongside Cesc Fabregas was ‘the best ever’ at one thing

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Former Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas was a teenage prodigy when he made his debut in 2003, but there were other rising stars alongside him that day.

Arsenal secured a victory over Rotherham United in the League Cup third round in October 2023, in a game which went to penalties at Highbury.

Arsene Wenger made wholesale changes to his team, with a lot of youngsters appearing for the first time, and Fabregas was the youngest of them all.

However, there was perhaps an even bigger talent from the academy playing that day, in substitute winger Ryan Smith, who many fans may not have even heard of.

Ryan Smith was one of Arsenal’s most talented youth products

Smith made just six appearances for Arsenal, but things could have been so different if he did not pick up a serious knee injury.

Arsenal youth coach Dan Buck, who trained some of Arsenal’s best prospects for years, has now told Hale End Productions that Smith was the biggest talent, and best 1v1 dribbler he had ever seen come through the ranks.

“I remember watching Ryan Smith who is still the best player I’ve ever seen at Hale End,” he stated.

“The way that he moved with the ball, and you know he made his debut with Cesc (Fabregas), obviously back to in the early 2000s, it was just incredible the way he would carry the ball and go 1v1.

“He was so unlucky with a really horrendous knee injury he got playing in a reserve game against Ipswich, but you know he was and still is the best 1v1 player I’ve ever seen.

“I would say the way he would glide with it and stuff like that, so he was a real benchmark and someone I was really lucky to work with for a period of time.

“He just knew a lot about things I didn’t know enough, about how to beat players and what it was like for him as a left winger and whatever but he was fantastic, and it’s a real shame that he got his injury when he did.”

Ryan Smith’s wasted potential at Arsenal

After Smith and Fabregas made their debuts, Arsenal would go on to win the league that season, and Fabregas would eventually become a key player within two years.

However, Smith picked up a serious injury which he never truly recovered from, losing his blistering pace which made him excellent in duels.

Smith was never the same after his injury, and would go on to feature for the likes of Leicester and Crystal Palace before moving to MLS.

If he did not pick up that injury, it is very possible that he could have become a regular.