Ethan Nwaneri: Arsenal legend Martin Keown says ‘classy, composed’ young midfielder deserves chance in starting XI

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Ethan Nwaneri appears to be the latest Arsenal academy graduate that is destined to grace the Emirates Stadium pitch for many years to come. The teenager has impressed during his limited time at the start of the new season and club legend Martin Keown believes that it could be time for the "classy" and "composed" player to be given some more minutes with the first-team.

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Arsenal legend Martin Keown has told TNT Sports that Ethan Nwaneri is knocking on the door and should be trusted to start for the first-team.

Nwaneri made Premier League history when he came on as a substitute in Arsenal's 3-0 victory at Brentford last season at the age of 15 years and 181 days, becoming the youngest player to ever appear in the Premier League.

The attacking midfielder also made an appearance in Arsenal's 6-0 win at West Ham United last season but has been trusted with more time with the first-team at the start of the new campaign.

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Nwaneri enjoyed a memorable first start for the club last week as Arsenal cruised to a 5-1 win over Bolton Wanderers, with the youngster scoring two goals on the night.

He also made a late cameo during The Gunners' win at Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month and once more when he came off the bench to help Arsenal to secure a stoppage-time victory over Leicester City on Saturday.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with TNT Sports, Keown believes that Nwaneri's performance against Leicester showed that he is ready to push for a starting place under Arteta.

"What was interesting was when Nwaneri came on, I think he demonstrated that he should’ve been on sooner," the former centre-back said.

"We’ve now got a very big game coming up against PSG, I’m wondering whether the youngster gets a start in that.

"Based on what he’s done in the last two matches, I think he looked really assured, composed and looked classy in the midweek cup game.

"You look and think at the opposition and get some context but when he came off the bench, I thought he lifted the level.

"Within seconds [of coming on], he’s shooting and testing the goalkeeper and very nearly scores from there. I think it’s an interesting one and I think the thrust he has – he’s in a hurry to make things happen.

"PSG might be the perfect night for him, but even if he doesn’t start the game, he’s shown now that he deserves to come on in the game."

'Why should they lie down?'

Keown added that supporters should not expect Arsenal v Manchester City to become a rivalry similar to one he was involved in as a player against Sir Alex Ferguson's Manchester United.

There appeared to be a lot of bad blood between both sets of players during the thrilling 2-2 draw between City and Arsenal last week, but Keown believes that there is no animosity between both managers.

Pep Guardiola and Arteta worked together at Etihad Stadium for four years and Keown suggests that due to their respect, the managers won't allow the rivalry to get out of control.

"It's the managers who keep a lid on this fixture because of their respect for one another," he explained.

"We had a massive rivalry with Manchester United and they’ve expressed years later how much they disliked us.

"But you know they’re not going to like you when you’re trying to rip away their stranglehold on English football which is what we have with City now.

"Man City are competitors and why should they lie down. There’s naturally going to be rivalries that take place.

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"You’ve got the same characters playing against each other time and time again. You don’t have to like each other. The managers are respectable of one another just at the moment.

"[Arteta] isn’t just suddenly going to manufacture a behaviour towards someone that he has the greatest of respect for, he’s a man of principle.

"Of course, he has his respect and worked with him for four years, he’s always followed him as a persona and a player, there’s a great deal of respect there.

"I don’t really see that changing, but you can still really want to beat someone and you can still have respect for them. Obviously, the respect works both ways.

"The managers are coming to quell the fire and not ignite it. With Ferguson and [Arsene] Wenger, they didn’t like each other, so their presence on the touchline was combustible and that’s not happened yet."

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