A new era has been hailed at the Emirates with the arrival of Unai Emery. Arsenal head into pre-season for the first time since 1995 without Arsene Wenger at the helm.
Emery has already brought a vast array of talent to the Emirates. Sokratis Papastathopoulos, Bernd Leno and Lucas Torreira amongst Emery’s new recruits. With the new influx of talent however, chances for younger players to break through may be limited.
Trying to break back into the top four will be the top priority for Emery next season. Several players underperformed for the Gunners last season, and there is a lot of dead wood in the Arsenal squad who need to be moved on. The other sides around Arsenal are also strengthening, so Emery has quite a challenge ahead of him.
Indeed, there are some young players in the Arsenal squad who should be moved on. Alex Iwobi is an example of a player who just looks like he will not cut it at the top level. However, some young players do deserve a chance to show Emery what they can do in pre-season.
With that in mind, here are two Arsenal wonderkids who should force an Emirates exit if they are not given a chance in pre-season…
Nelson is a serious prospect.
Reiss Nelson has always shone in the England youth-set up. He played a key role in the England under-17 set up which reached the quarter-finals of the 2016 European Under-17 Championship, in which he scored three goals in four appearances.
The forward does not want to risk not improving because of lack of first-team football. We have seen the likes of Jadon Sancho having a successful move to Germany to play for Dortmund, and Nelson could weigh up a similar move abroad if not handed an opportunity in North London.
The 18-year-old wonder kid will be hoping he gets a chance to prove himself in pre-season.
Eddie Nketiah is another player with a good pedigree.
A player who has a lethal goal scoring record in youth football, Nketiah is a real prospect going forward for the Gunners. The front man had a deadly record of 8 goals in 8 appearances for the England under 19 side.
With Emery focusing purely on results, it is unclear whether Nketiah will get a chance under the Spaniard. With a pure focus on results, whether Emery will look to blood young players is questionable.
