Mikel Arteta believes something he has done so far at Arsenal this season is magical.
The Gunners have had a mixed start in terms of results, suffering a disappointing defeat at the hands of Liverpool in their last fixture, after having beaten Manchester United and Leeds.
Arteta is trying to integrate several new players into his squad, after Andrea Berta spent in excess of £250 million on eight new recruits to bolster the depth of the Spaniard’s ensemble.
The divisive head coach is also still trying to blood academy players in the first team, whilst accommodating all these new additions.
Mikel Arteta says Max Dowman playing for Arsenal this season is ‘magic’
Arsenal’s Hale End academy has been fruitful in recent years.
Bukayo Saka emerged from the Gunners’ youth set-up in 2019 and has established himself as the talisman of the first team, while the likes of Joe Willock, Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe all fetched significant fees from elsewhere.
Last term, Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly burst onto the scene, and this season, Max Dowman is threatening to.
Dowman has caught the eye with some exceptional cameo performances off the bench so far, despite only turning 15 last December.
Speaking with Steve Kerr to Luke Darcy for the Aleda Collective, Arteta spoke about using the teenage sensation in the first team, describing it as ‘magic’.
“It’s bringing clarity, the right environment and then actions,” he said.
“We want to transform our players, staff and everyone around with one purpose, to win trophies.
“It’s that capacity to transform, for me that is the power of it, the capacity to change somebody’s life. For me, now, for a 15-year-old to fulfil his dream of being a football player, his family, the consequences of that, that is magic.”
What role will Max Dowman play for Arsenal this season?
With the depth that Arsenal have, it’s likely that Dowman won’t be a permanent fixture in the Gunners’ matchday squad this season.
Not on the bench away at Manchester United in the first game of the season, the starlet has been given the opportunity to make the squad due to injury issues.
However, Arteta did bring Dowman on over Nwaneri at Anfield, while he introduced him instead of Gabriel Martinelli against Leeds.
The Spaniard clearly trusts the youngster, and it’s possible that he plays a more prominent role from the outset.
That said, if there does come a time when all the senior options are available to Arteta, then he’s unlikely to select Dowman over any of them, so as not to risk creating issues regarding squad harmony.
His role will likely be limited to the odd cameo off the bench and some minutes in cup competitions.
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