Marli Salmon is undoubtedly one of Arsenal’s biggest young talents, and the North London club are giving him every chance of making the grade.
The 16-year-old became the youngest Arsenal player to appear in the FA Cup as he came off the bench against Portsmouth.
Marli Salmon becomes Arsenal’s youngest ever FA Cup player, but can YOU name who he overtook?
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Mikel Arteta has spoken highly of Salmon, also handing him his debut in the Champions League this season.
Along with Max Dowman, Salmon is one of the most exciting players to emerge from Hale End after Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri.
He will now be bidding to become the first out-and-out defender to make the grade at Arsenal and achieve something unique at the Emirates Stadium.
Marli Salmon has Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba as Arsenal mentors
Marli Salmon has the privilege of being mentored by two of the best defenders in the world at Arsenal, Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.
Every day, the teenager will go into training at London Colney and get the chance to work alongside two of the best in the business.
Along with being coached by Mikel Arteta and Gabriel Heinze, the young centre-back gets to see what the best in the world are doing each day.
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Gabriel and Saliba are both characters who will be supporting and offering constant advice to the teenager, which will be key to keeping him on track.
The youngster has also been shown a clear pathway to the first team, with Nwaneri, Lewis-Skelly, Bukayo Saka, and Dowman all becoming academy graduates.
Everything is now in place for Salmon to eventually become a first-team regular, although the Gunners will be cautious of rushing him into that stage.
Meanwhile, Arsenal look set for an overhaul of the academy following the departure of the club’s Academy Manager, Per Mertesacker.
The former Gunners defender has stepped down from his role in N5, having spent almost eight years in the position.
Dion Dublin hails Marli Salmon’s ‘outstanding’ achievement at Arsenal
Dion Dublin believes that Salmon, making his FA Cup debut for Arsenal aged just 16, is an outstanding achievement.
The former Premier League striker made sure to shout out the teenager on BBC Match of the Day following the win over Pompey.
Dublin told MOTD: “A quick nod to Marli Salmon, coming on and playing for Arsenal at 16 years and 100 and odd days, that’s outstanding – so good to that young lad!”
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