Max Dowman’s rise to first-teamer at Arsenal is the stuff of dreams and while Eberechi Eze is a huge fan, it has ramifications for the England man.
Dowman once again impressed as Arsenal downed Mansfield in the FA Cup this weekend. Eze, of course, also starred as he scored the winner.
However, while Ebere Eze has lauded Dowman’s abilities, there’s also got to be some doubt in there that he could well lose his squad spot to the teenager.
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Max Dowman could end up taking Eberechi Eze’s spot at Arsenal
Eze was interviewed after the Mansfield game this weekend and showed some love towards Dowman when asked about him.
“He is a special, special player. To be able to play in these types of conditions and do so well on the ball, and dribble the way he was, showed he is a special talent,” Eze told The Sun.
“We are all trying to support and help him as much as possible to grow, improve and fulfil his potential.
“Max is very different to a lot of players, but he is someone that is confident. He believes in his ability a lot. To be fair, that is the same with a lot of the players coming through the academy these days.
“Once they come to train with the first team, they believe in themselves. It is a positive energy to be around. He is a special player, but also a special person as well. You can see that he is maturing well and he’s a good guy. It’s fun to be around.”
Clearly, Eze and the Arsenal players already love Dowman and know what they have in terms of pure footballing ability.
However, Eze could end up being the loser from Dowman’s emergence.
Clearly, they are similar players in terms of their mindset to play on the half-turn and create chances for teammates in the final third. That was on full display from both against Mansfield, with Dowman in particular causing chaos for the lower league outfit.
Over time, could we actually see Dowman progress and actually push Eze out of the team? That’s a question only those two and Mikel Arteta will be able to answer.
But worrying still for Eze is that Dowman could also push him down the England pecking order.
At 16, Dowman has a long way to go in his career as a footballer. But with the clear belief Arteta has in him and the fact he’s already impressing so much, he’s going to be knocking on the door for regular first-team minutes soon.
As for Eze, it will be up to the likes of him and Martin Odegaard to lay down their own marker and make it harder work than ever for Dowman to step in.
For Arsenal, this is a win-win situation. On one hand they have one of Europe’s best young players. On the other hand, Dowman is going to force senior players like Eze to step up or lose their place.
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