Fabrizio Romano insists there is no reason for Arsenal fans to ‘panic’ over Emile Smith Rowe’s future amid claims of interest from Premier League rivals Chelsea.
After missing almost the entirety of last season through injury, the Arsenal academy graduate has played only one minute of top-flight football in 2023/24. His first appearance of the new campaign came belatedly in the dying seconds of Sunday’s enthralling North London derby draw with Tottenham Hotspur.
And while there will still be plenty of opportunities for Emile Smith Rowe to stake his claim – Arsenal have Champions League football to think about this season, not to mention the domestic cups – the signing of Kai Havertz and the emergence of Fabio Vieira have undoubtedly pushed him down the pecking order.
Romano, however, insists that it is ‘too early’ to suggest that a January departure could be on the cards. There is a lot of football to be played between now and then. And should Havertz continue to struggle – and if Smith Rowe can rediscover the form that made him such a key player under Mikel Arteta in 2021/22 – then his fortunes could change very quickly.
Emile Smith Rowe still has an Arsenal future
“Interest was always there for Emile Smith Rowe this summer as he’s a talent,” Romano tells his Daily Briefings, via Caught Offside. “But there was never any negotiation, despite (those) Chelsea links.
“At the moment he is not playing much. But it’s too early to say what this means for his future.
“For January, we have to see what they decide in December as now the message is very clear; Arteta is happy with current squad and wants to focus on the next months with these players.
“No panic.”
Smith Rowe hit double figures in the Premier League in 2021/22, scoring 11 in all competitions. The England U21 international has, it must be said, featured in both of Arsenal’s last two games, with a first start of the campaign potentially on the way against Brentford in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.
‘He has a role’
“He has a role like everybody else does,” Arteta said a few weeks back. “Obviously, I have conversations with him. It’s important for him to understand where he is.
“In every country, because it’s one game per week for a month, there’s not minutes for everybody. But September will be very different.”
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