Morning all.
A quick Saturday round-up for you, starting with the news that Myles Lewis-Skelly has been called up to the England squad for the World Cup qualifiers with Albania and Latvia. That’s obviously reward for his emergence this season and the quality of his performances, but there’s an element of good timing too as there have been a number of injuries at left-back which have left the door open.
But, that’s how football works. One man’s misfortune is another man’s opportunity. England boss Thomas Tuchel said:
We were always impressed with Myles since he started, Mikel Arteta picks him regularly. I can understand it feels like we are fast-forwarding a career that is already on a fast pace. I can promise the talks over the last few weeks have had a bit of a parental vibe, a protective vibe. Is it our responsibility not to take him? But with the quality and maturity he showed in the matches, we decided to take him.
While Mikel Arteta reacted to the news, saying:
I’m very proud of him. It’s a huge moment for him and for the club as well. One of our graduates getting the call for England, it’s a massive thing, so very happy.
It’s something for people to be inspired by. I think it hasn’t happened because he was lucky. I think he pushed for every chance to make it happen and the way he’s done it.
Meanwhile, Ethan Nwaneri is included in the U21 squad for friendlies against France and Portugal. I think this is probably the right decision for him at this moment in time. He’s been very good, but there have been games where I think his age has been evident, and there’s still a little way to go for him to produce with the kind of consistency you need at the very top level. Arteta’s reaction to that:
It’s a big step. He’s 17 years old and he’s playing with the number 21s with all the names that they have in the team. I spoke to Lee (Carsley) this morning and I’m glad that he’s as well his coach because I know him very well since we’ve played together for many years. So, a great pathway and development for him and a great experience for him.
Perhaps one feature of these selection decisions is that while these two are very talented individuals, there is such a strong connection between them that this could be something Nwaneri uses as motivation. He will want those senior caps like his mate, and I’m sure they’ll come, but for now he has a little way to go.
Tuchel also revealed he’d spoken to Ben White who has made it clear he’s ready to resume his England career. These games have come too soon for him, he got some minutes against PSV the other night but you can see he’s still building sharpness and fitness after his knee surgery, but going forward he’s up for selection. Which tells us something we already knew – he didn’t ‘turn his back on his country’ like some of the most jingoistic sections of the press would have you believe, he just refused to be belittled by Gareth Southgate’s assistant whose name nobody can remember. Good for him, I say.
There was also an update on Bukayo Saka, who we are all hoping can return to play a part in what remains of the season, with those two Real Madrid games on the horizon in particular. Arteta was asked about the next steps, and said:
He’s going to be here, hopefully more with the ball on his feet. That would mean that he’s passing the ball and shooting and running and everything. He’s done quite a lot already on the pitch, everything on his own, that’s true. The next is to reintegrate with people around him, with players around him and more competitive training sessions and see how he goes with that.
That’s certainly positive, but as we saw with Ben White on Wednesday, a return to action and a return to a player’s best form are two very distinct things. Arsenal have to manage that with some caution. This was a big injury that required surgery, and as hard as any player works, it’s going to take them some time to find their top level again. I don’t think we can – or should – expect to see Saka back in the side doing 90 minutes after 90 minutes, but hopefully his initial cameos can just give us an injection of something in the final third we’re lacking right now.
Ok, I’ll leave it there for this morning. Our Patreon preview podcast should be out mid-morning, you can get on board at patreon.com/arseblog – for now, have a good one.
