As Arsenal prepare to go head-to-head against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, Mauro Bandeira is believed to have been involved in first-team training.
A claim was made on Tuesday that the 19-year-old may have a chance of making the Gunners bench ahead of the potential title decider.
While one will wait and see whether Mauro Bandeira is watching Arsenal lock horns against Manchester City amongst the substitutes, he has been training with the senior side.
Mauro Bandeira reportedly in Arsenal training ahead of Manchester City clash
A tenacious box-to-box midfielder by trade, the wonderkid, alongside the likes of Ethan Nwaneri, Amario Cozier-Duberry and Bradley Ibrahim is rated as one of the best young players at the club.
So much so that Football Fan Cast have already branded the teenager as the ‘next [Granit] Xhaka.’
Arsenal youth team expert Jeorge Bird has claimed that Mauro Bandeira has been training with the big boys ahead of their upcoming battle against Manchester City.
While some may speculate whether a start is on the cards, that is unlikely to be the case to say the least.
HITC View: Mikel Arteta clearly rates Mauro Bandeira very highly
It really is as cut and dry as the fact that whichever team wins on Wednesday become hot favourites to lift the title at the end of the season.
Considering just how much is on the line for Arsenal ahead of their game against Manchester City, the fact that Mauro Bandeira was called up to be in and amongst the senior players shows how much Mikel Arteta already trusts him.
A key aspect of such training sessions before matches of this magnitude is to replicate potential in-game situations and prepare for them.
Instead of asking Bandeira to play with the youth players, the fact that Arteta has instead tasked him to test his potential starters is a sign that he may very well be a truly special talent.
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