Awesome Youngsters Will Play Premier League Football
Arsene Wenger says he would not be afraid to play any of his young Gunners in the Premier League after Arsenal demolished Sheffield United 6-0 in the Carling Cup.
Wenger had named a side with an average age of only 19 – and was not disappointed as the youngsters stepped up to the challenge to leave the Championship side in tatters.
Mexican striker Carlos Vela grabbed a hat-trick, while Nicklas Bendtner hit a first-half double and 16-year-old Jack Wilshere weighed in with his first senior goal.
There were also impressive displays from Wales Under-21 midfielder Aaron Ramsey and aspiring full-back Kieran Gibbs, which all left the Arsenal manager confident the club’s future is in safe hands.
He said:
“The team showed a good mixture of talent and a mature collective spirit to play football the way we want to play.
“The way the team remained focused and they looked a complete team. I am very proud of that.
“We looked strong in every individual position, and that takes a lot of hard work.”
Wenger added:
“We knew about Bendtner, but we discovered more about Vela. He is a clinical finisher.
“I integrated Wilshere into the first team sometimes last season when he was 15 and he did not look out of place and it is natural for him.
“I was not surprised because I see them every day, but you never know on a big stage how they play.
“They did that with the belief we want them to have and the spirit we want then to have.
“Now for us the biggest challenge is to keep them together and slowly integrate them into the first team. Some have done that already.
“These players do not play like kids. They play with intelligence, talent and with spirit.
“They can beat many teams and I would not be scared to play any individual in the Premier League.”
Arsenal head coach Arsene Wenger named his youngest ever team for the third round clash with Championship side Kevin Blackwell’s side and it certainly paid off. There will be more to come from Wenger’s young Gunners and I personally, can’t wait.
Top Gun
The kids were top class last night & i really think wilshere will be one to make it in the 1st team.
And to think they only charged 10 pound!
Check out http://armchairman.wordpress.com for a comprehensive article on Wenger and the young uns in light of the 6-0 win
hey there.
straight to it and no messing around, that performance, and its repercussions, will rock the footballing world. and it will change the footballing world.
it shows what you can do without spending a great deal- it shows why in some ways the youth system is superior to bringing players in, especially in this day and age of inflated prices. a player coming through the youth system of a team understands its values and philosophies far more then a player transferred in- therefore, it may encourage teams to start searching for youngsters at 16, 15, 14 years old rather then trying to get the big buys. this way of doing things is starting to grow already (my team liverpool started doing it in rafas second year there) and it means that hopefully the level of football will rise in all quarters.
essentially, if these players get their bow on premiership soil, at their tiny ages, the world will look and see, and say 'we should be doing that' and teams beyond the top ones could suddenly start going into developing quality youth in order to challenge.
nice job arsenal youth. you may well have changed the course of football.
The catch is “any ONE of them”. They're all quite good individually, but they're still kids. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We've still a thin squad, and we'll have problems once the injuries pile up. The kids played very well, but their form will ebb and flow. Can't expect them to sustain it for a full season. Still need an experienced body in midfield.
Stunning result, whatever the case. Vela is awesome.