Arsenal might have another fresh-faced starlet on their hands in the shape of teenager Matthew Dennis, with Gunners teammate Nathan Butler-Oyedeji labelling him ‘unplayable’ in an interview with Deluded Gooner.
If the 2019/20 season has been one to forget for everyone on the red half of North London, the future at least looks a little brighter than the present.
In Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Matteo Guendouzi, William Saliba, Reiss Nelson and more, Arsenal have some of the most exciting youngsters in the game on their hands. And, what’s more, they have a coach who is more than willing to give them a chance in the shape of Pep Guardiola’s protégé Mikel Arteta.
Dennis, a right-back who can play further forward in attack, is yet to force his way into Arteta’s first-team plans. But an opportunity is all-but certain to come his way eventually if he continues to catch the eye behind the scenes.
“Matthew Dennis in training, sometimes he is unplayable,” Butler-Oyedeji says of a player who has three goals in 16 games for Arsenal at youth level in recent months.
With Hector Bellerin, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Cedric Soares all facing uncertain futures beyond this summer, Dennis might actually be closer to a first-team berth than you might think.
Then again, with just one Premier League 2 appearance to the name of a player who has featured far more regularly at U18 level, another year honing his talents at reserve-team level would probably do him some good.
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