Ethan Nwaneri sends fresh Arsenal message to Mikel Arteta after England display

Arsenal's teenage starlet Ethan Nwaneri has sent a fresh message to Mikel Arteta with a strong performance for England's under-19s on Saturday.

Nwaneri has been with the Gunners since he was eight years old and he's progressed rapidly through the ranks, featuring regularly for the under-18s when he was just 14. In September 2022, at just 15, he made his senior debut for the club when he came off the bench to replace Fabio Vieira late in the second half against Brentford, and in doing so he became the youngest player to ever appear in the Premier League, breaking a record previously held by Liverpool's Harvey Elliott.

This season, he has already amassed eight appearances across all competitions for Arteta's side. He started both of their Carabao Cup games against Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End, and he scored three goals across those two games.

Nwaneri has also made substitute appearances in a handful of league games, including against Liverpool, Newcastle and north London rivals Tottenham. The young midfielder also played a total of eight minutes in the Champions League defeat to Inter Milan before the international break.

For England, Nwaneri has joined up with the under-19s this season and he was part of the team that faced Bulgaria in Euro 2025 qualifying on Saturday afternoon. The young Lions secured a narrow 2-1 victory and both Nwaneri and West Ham's Lewis Orford were on the scoresheet.

It was Nwaneri's second goal of the qualifying campaign to put England back on level terms late in the first half after they had initially fallen behind. He found the bottom corner from outside the box after some clever link up play with fellow Arsenal starlet Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Nwaneri very nearly scored a second around the hour mark, but he failed to hit the target as he dragged an effort wide of the far post. Instead, he will hope to get on the scoresheet once again when Will Antwi's side take on Belgium on Tuesday.

For Arsenal, they return to action after the international break with the visit of Nottingham Forest in the Premier League. The East Midlands club are currently level on 19 points with Arteta's side in the standings, and could overtake the Gunners if they're to pick up a win next week.

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