"School in the morning, he's got school in the morning."
That was the chant coming from the away end during the closing stages of Arsenal ’s 3-0 win over Brentford on Sunday as Ethan Nwaneri was brought on to replace Fabio Vieira. Nwaneri, wearing No.83, came on in the 92nd minute and touched the ball just once in the following three minutes, yet finished the match as a history maker.
Aged 15 years and 181 days old, the Arsenal youngster became the youngest player to ever feature in a Premier League match, beating the record held by Liverpool star Harvey Elliott, who was 16 years and 30 days old when he played in the top flight for Fulham back in 2019.
On the day Arsenal moved back to the top of the Premier League, Nwaneri added another layer of enjoyment for Gunners fans. After the match, Arteta gave the lowdown on the youngster, who was recommended for first-team duties by academy manager Per Mertesacker.
"We have the opportunities to bring young players on,” he said. “We are pretty short and opportunities come when issues arise. It was a pure gut feeling. I met the boy, I really liked what I saw.
"He trained with us a couple of times. I had that feeling yesterday that if the opportunity could come, I would do it. He deserves it. He has been doing great. He is such a big talent we want to keep with us.”
That only tells you so much, so allow Mirror Football to tell you more about the Premier League record breaker.
‘Unbelievable ability’
Nwaneri is not just etched into the Premier League’s history books, he also surpassed club legends Cesc Fabregas (16 years, five months and 24 days) and Jack Wilshere (16 years, 256 days) as Arsenal's youngest ever player. That is some weight on his shoulders, but unsurprisingly he has not come from nowhere at Arsenal.
The 15-year-old is used to playing above his age category. He is a regular for the Arsenal under-18s and has also turned out for the under-21s.
He scored on his under-18s debut, aged 14, and last month he scored for England’s under-17s after coming off the bench. Nwaneri is still on schoolboy terms with Arsenal, because he is still at school, but it is clear his star is on the rise.
In pre-season he played in a friendly for Arsenal’s under-18s against Slough Town on July 30. Although the young Gunners lost the match 1-0, Nwaneri was singled out for specific praise by Slough manager Neil Baker.
“Their number 10 has got great feet, he’s only a real youngster,” Baker said. “He’s a real high hope for them at Arsenal. He’s got absolutely unbelievable ability."
‘Champion mentality’
Rewind to February and Nwaneri was making just his second appearance for Arsenal’s under-18s side.
Nwaneri picked up two assists in the 4-2 win over Reading to earn praise from his manager Dan Micciche, who has since been replaced by Wilshere as under-18s boss. "He's someone very highly thought of here as there are other boys at Hale End as well,” Micciche said.
"We have Omari Benjamin and Brian [Okonkwo] with us. Particularly at this stage of the season you want to start to integrate those boys more.
"Ethan and Omari in particular have both played international football of late, they can play the year up internationally. What's great about these boys is that their feet is firmly on the ground, they trained with us yesterday, excellent application and we trust them.
"I trusted him to perform today and he got two assists. Knowing him he will leave here disappointed that he has not scored a goal or he's misplaced a few passes because he's got that champion mentality. Really pleased for him."
Viral goal on debut
The first buzz about Nwaneri came back in May 2021 when his goal on debut for the under-18s went viral. His strike in a 6-1 win over Reading showed just why he’s so highly rated, with a neat piece of footwork followed by a curling left-footed shot into the top corner from the edge of the box.
Nwaneri came on for Vieira on Sunday – and that substitution gives a hint to his best position. The youngster is most comfortable in a No10 position, operating as an attack-minded midfielder.
That is a position Arteta has put a lot of investment into recently, signing Martin Odegaard and Vieira to complement academy graduate Emile Smith Rowe. It is obviously very early days for Nwaneri, but there is already plenty to like about him.
In 11 appearances across the under-18s, under-21s and first team, he already has four goals and five assists. The likelihood is that he will move back down to continue his development with Wilshere’s under-18s and Mehmet Ali’s under-21s. But with the international break now upon us, he could get more opportunities to train with Arteta’s first team.
