It’ll be interesting to see what becomes of Daniel Ballard at Arsenal.
The 21-year-old is due back in North London this summer following a brilliant loan in League One with Blackpool – and it could get better.
Ballard, a member of Arsenal’s academy, helped the Tangerine into the playoff final and set up his side’s second goal with a fine headed assist.
But he was taken off injured midway through last night’s second leg with Oxford United as Neil Critchley’s side secured a Wembley spot with a 6-3 aggregate victory.
It remains to be seen if the Arsenal loanee will be available for the final in eight days.
But Ballard – who has kept 14 clean sheets in defence this season – certainly didn’t seem too pessimistic, as far as his post-match message on Twitter goes.
And here’s how some Blackpool fans responded to him on social media:
It’ll be difficult for the youngster to break into Mikel Arteta’s senior squad at Arsenal.
Then again, we know that the Spaniard places a huge emphasis on how good his players are in training.
He will definitely get a chance to impress Arteta in pre-season but beyond that, who knows.
With question marks over William Saliba’s future and Dinos Mavropanos reportedly set to be sold, there may just be room for another central defender.
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