Arsenal intend to keep hold of Emile Smith Rowe despite talk of an exit this summer and the decision will have an impact on Mikel Arteta's squad planning for next season.
After a breakout 2021/22 campaign in which the attacking midfielder celebrated signing a new contract by netting 10 Premier League goals as well as earning his first caps for the senior England national team, big things were expected from the 22-year-old before a ball was kicked back in August.
However, after being restricted to one outing in pre-season and a handful of substitute appearances at the beginning of the season, a decision was made for Smith Rowe to undergo groin surgery in September and following a successful operation he returned to action in January in the FA Cup tie against Oxford United.
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But a thigh strain suffered not too long afterward kept him on the sidelines for a few weeks and he found opportunities few and far between once he was available for selection again, failing to start a single Premier League fixture and featuring just a handful of times during the run-in.
As a result of Smith Rowe's lack of minutes, speculation has been rife surrounding his future as Aston Villa - with whom he was linked a couple of summers ago - have been mooted as a possible destination were he to leave the Emirates Stadium when the summer transfer window opens.
Having said that, it's since emerged that he is staying put. According to the Athletic, he remains an important part of Arteta's long-term plans in north London and football.london's Arsenal chief correspondent Kaya Kaynak has reported what work the midfielder has been doing behind the scenes.
"We've done some stuff on the Smith Rowe situation in terms of him being left out. He's come back since the injury, he's pain free, he's there, he's doing well in training," Kaynak stated when speaking on The View From The Clock End podcast on Monday afternoon.
"All the reports from training are positive, he's lost weight, his physique is much leaner than it ever has been before. He's setting personal records when it comes to pace, physicality all of those things, he's not had any conversations with Arteta, there's not been any specific, 'you need to do this to be in the team'."
All signs are pointing toward Smith Rowe featuring prominently for Arsenal next season, but it still remains to be seen in what capacity as he's previously been tipped to play in multiple roles by Arteta.
"He can play as a left winger, he can play as a left attacking midfielder, right attacking midfielder and he can play as a nine — very, very well I think," the Spaniard said a couple of years ago which was somewhat of a surprise given the Gunners' no.10 operated as a false nine in the Europa League semi-final first-leg against Villarreal during the 2020/21 campaign and it backfired.
Looking at the left-wing position and there's strong competition for places with Gabriel Martinelli, Leandro Trossard and even Reiss Nelson, who football.london understands has agreed to sign a new contract with the club - so it would appear that Smith Rowe is primed for a midfield role next season.
Interestingly, on the final day of the 2022/23 campaign against Wolves, it was he who replaced captain Martin Odegaard as the right-sided number 8 with Fabio Vieira taking the place of Granit Xhaka. Perhaps that's a sign of things to come especially with the Switzerland international likely to join Bayer Leverkusen this summer.
If that indeed is the plan then the natural successor for Xhaka as the left-sided number 8 is still to emerge. For example, links to James Maddison have resurfaced following Leicester City's relegation so there's every chance Arteta targets an extra midfield signing despite interest in Declan Rice among others.
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