Rio Ferdinand has urged Charlie Patino to ‘do your thing’ after he secured a loan move from Arsenal to Championship side Blackpool, as he posted on the player’s Instagram.
Arsenal confirmed on their website that their talented midfielder has joined Blackpool on a season-long loan.
The 18-year-old got a taste of first-team action under Mikel Arteta last season, when he made his debut against Sunderland in the League Cup.
The Hale-End star came off the bench to score on a debut to remember, but his second game, Arsenal’s FA Cup defeat at Nottingham Forest, was a reality check for the player.
Forest came up from the Championship last season when they earned promotion to England’s top-flight via the play-offs, as Patino will now get a taste of that hard-hitting and gruelling league.
Nonetheless, when the Patino deal was confirmed, he shared on his IG that he is ‘delighted’ to have made the move, with Manchester United legend, Rio Ferdinand, posting in the comments section ‘Do your think CP.’
BIG TEST FOR PATINO
Dropping into the Championship as a fresh-faced teenager is no easy feat and Patino will find that out this season.
When Arteta provided him with a chance against Forest, it was obvious that he was struggling with the fast nature and physicality of that game.
It’s what he will come up against on a weekly basis, but it’s what will mature him into a top midfielder that wants to be fighting for first-team places at his boyhood club in a few years time.
The likes of Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe are prime examples of players that have shown that the path is there for them to walk down.
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