HI RES ECFC Issue 05 Cardiff_Arsenal U21s - Flipbook - Page 10
ARSENAL
UNDER 21S
Arsenal Academy are back competing in
the Vertu Trophy for an eighth time since
Category One academies were introduced
to the competition in 2016.
While the Gunners did not compete in the first
two instalments since the tournament’s shake-up,
they have otherwise been regular fixtures since
the 2018/19 season where they debuted with a
knock-out appearance.
It is a feat the north London outfit have
accomplished on five occasions, doing so at four
successive attempts from 2020 onwards before
last season’s third-place finish brought said run
to an end.
Nevertheless, as they look to start up a new run
this season, Max Porter’s side, while not getting
ahead of themselves, will be wanting to be just
the second Arsenal team to get past the second
round of the competition with a quarter-final run
in 2021/22, where they defeated Ipswich Town and
10 The Grecian
Chelsea U21 in the successive rounds – their bestever run in the competition.
Tests against senior opposition, with trips to
Newport County and Cardiff City either side of
their SJP visit, complement their action-packed
PL2 schedule with a bumper 29-team division
putting the young Gunners through their paces
having finished no lower than eighth since 2022.
More importantly, it has provided a pathway for
numerous academy talents to make their name
known at the Emirates Stadium with first-team
stars Bukayo Saka, Ethan Nwaneri and Myles
Lewis-Skelly waving the Hale End flag high on
both Premier League and continental stages.
Fifteen-year-old talent Max Dowman appears to
be the latest player off the Arsenal production
line too after propelling his name through the
development scene and into Mikel Arteta’s firstteam plans as those on show tonight look to do
something similar with a convincing performance
in Devon.
