The draw for the group stages of the EFL Trophy was made yesterday, with Arsenal U21s to participate in the competition for the eighth season in succession.
Arsenal’s record in the tournament doesn’t make for particularly good reading – the furthest they have reached was the quarter-finals in the 2021/22 campaign and they were eliminated in the group stages last season.
However, it has traditionally been difficult for U21 teams to compete against senior opponents, even though clubs from League One and League Two often tend to field rotated sides.
This time around Arsenal have been placed in Group A, which will see them take on Cardiff City, Exeter City and Newport County. As is always the case, Arsenal will be away in each of the group games, which means that there will be some lengthy trips for Mehmet Ali’s squad.
Arsenal U21s have never previously faced Cardiff in the EFL Trophy but there are some familiar faces in The Bluebirds’ squad in Calum Chambers and Hale End product Chris Willock.
In 2023 Arsenal won 5-0 against Exeter, with Seb Ferdinand scoring a brace, while Charles Sagoe Jr, Khayon Edwards and Jack Henry-Francis were also on target.
Arsenal also have prior experience of facing Newport County, having won 4-3 in 2021. Omari Hutchinson, Salah-Eddine and James Olayinka all scored, with Sagoe Jr getting a late winner.
It will be interesting to see which players are selected to feature in the EFL Trophy this time around and it could well prove to be valuable experience for some of the younger players in the setup.
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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird