RYAN ALEBIOSU insists Scottish football is the perfect platform for him to kick on in his career.
The defender will spend the 2022/23 season on loan at Kilmarnock from Arsenal.
The 20-year-old made his debut in their Premier Sports Cup win over Stenhousemuir last weekend.
Alebiosu put in a stunning display, earning man of the match despite playing only 45-minutes.
Derek McInnes admitted his first-half showing was as good a debut as he’d ever seen.
The player is excited to get going properly in the league campaign at home to Dundee United today.
And he knows exactly what playing in the Premiership could do for him in the future, as he gets ready to take the next steps in his development.
Alebiosu said: “I spoke to Harry Clarke who was at Ross County. He’s done well and I thought this could be a pathway for me.
“I followed Calvin Bassey when he came up here from Leicester. I looked at what he did and thought ‘I'd like to give that a go.’ He has set the benchmark for everyone now.
“I watched him in the Europa League Final. It was a great performance and has helped get him his move.
“I can believe in this league that if I can perform I can get myself to the next level like Calvin Bassey.
“He has proved what is capable of and I see this as a great platform.”
Asked exactly what the next stage would be, he replied: “Hopefully the next stage will be the Arsenal first team. If not then somewhere just as good.
“My manager there knows about Scottish football so that is helpful. He has spoken a lot about Scottish football to me.”
Alebiosu is a classic, modern-day full-back. His showing against Stenny highlighted that he likes to attack as much as possible and to help assist his teammates.
It can be no surprise to anyone some of the players down south who he’s taken inspiration from.
He said: “Kyle Walker and Trent Alexander-Arnold are two players I love to watch.
“Attacking wise they bring a lot of entertainment and a lot of goals.
“They are fast and aggressive and I try to base myself on them and hopefully expand on that as well.
“I just love to keep pushing myself and hopefully the goals and assists will come this season.”
Alebiosu is ambitious and wants to see Killie look up the league rather than down.
He added: “I think we have to push for the top six this season and there is no reason we can't do it if we all work hard. If we believe and stick together then maybe we can aim even higher.
“The club finished third a few seasons ago so it would be great if we could try to do that again. I have a good feeling about the season ahead.”
With his first full week of training under his belt, McInnes says the Gunners youngster has made quite the impression on the Rugby Park outfit.
On Alebiosu, he said: “We’ve got to enjoy his performances. Even in his training, it’s a brilliant level of performance. He plays with real speed, he’s technically good and for someone so young, I’m glad with how well he dealt with the game last week.
“I’m glad with how he’s mixed with the squad. First impressions, he’s been excellent.
“There’s now an expectation on him of course, he’s got to go try and meet that level of performance. Obviously, we want him to be as attacking-minded as he was but he’ll have to defend a lot more this time around.
“He’s impressed his teammates, he’s impressed the staff here. When we saw a lot of his clips and watched some of his games at the start of pre-season, he looked like the type of player that we would enjoy working with.
“We had to be patience because we knew Arsenal were keeping him through pre-season. Ideally we’d have got him in a lot earlier and been able to get him up to speed but such is the way, you’ve got to be patient with these things.
“He’s been what we expected, but you never really know until you get them face-to-face. I had a lot of conversations with him on the phone, but it’s good to build that relationship with a young player. I’ve got a good feeling about him.”
