The goal for Arsenal this season has to be to finally get their hands on the Premier League title.
Mikel Arteta's side finished the last three campaigns in second place and have been building towards finally getting over the line.
However, while the fans and team will be focused on the here and now, the board and powers that be have to take a longer-term view and plan for the next squad and the one after that.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta
It's this approach that has seen the club sign one of the most exciting youngsters in the game, a player who could provide Arsenal's own Ethan Nwaneri with real competition for the ten position a few years from now.
The future of Arsenal's ten position
After years of building it, Arsenal finally have a squad in which most positions have at least two players competing for a place.
This is especially true when it comes to attacking midfield.
The two main competitors for that role this season have been and will likely continue to be Martin Odegaard and Eberechi Eze.
martin-odegaard-arsenal
The former has held the position for the last few years but had an underwhelming campaign last year, registering just 18 goal involvements in 45 games.
Eze, on the other hand, racked up a brilliant haul of 25 goal involvements in 43 games for Crystal Palace in the ten role last year.
Neither one has genuinely made the position their own this season, but the Englishman has been more productive, racking up seven goal involvements there to his captain's two.
Both players will need to start improving, though, as within a year or two they are likely to face more serious competition for gametime from Hale End stars Nwaneri and Dowman.
Nwaneri in 24/25
Appearances
Minutes
Goals
Assists
Goal Involvements per Match
Minutes per Goal Involvement
All Stats via Transfermarkt
The former spent most of last season on the right, where he scored nine goals and provided two assists in 37 appearances, but is mainly seen as a number ten.
The latter, while still just 15, is seen as one of the best prospects to ever come through the club's academy, where he once again spent most of his time playing in attacking midfield.
Overall, the future of Arsenal's number ten position is hugely promising, and now, thanks to Andrea Berta and Co, another incredible talent will be competing to play there, which could be bad news for Nwaneri.
Arsenal's new Dowman-like Gem
With people like talent scout Jacek Kulig dubbing Dowman "the most exciting prospect" they've seen "since Lamine Yamal," you have to be pretty special to be compared to him.
Fortunately, from what those in the know say, Holger Quintero seems more than special enough to warrant that comparison.
Arsenal completed the signing of the 16-year-old wonderkid and his twin brother earlier this month, but, due to rules on foreign-born youngsters, neither will be able to join the first team until they're 18, in 2027.
The good news is that it will just give them more time to develop away from the spotlight.
Although, based on what is being said about them, like Dowman, they'd probably be able to feature on the snore side this season.
For example, respected analyst-turned-scout Ben Mattinson has described Holger as "a decisive creator with a killer final ball" who has "excellent vision to see the whole game" but also "1v1 prowess to take on players."
As if that wasn't enough, Kulig has described the teenager as "one of the most exciting U17s in South America," which is high praise indeed considering the level of talent coming out of the continent.
Finally, on top of everything else, U23 scout Antonio Mango described him as someone blessed with "high technical & intellect qualities."
In all, the Ecuadorian wonderkid sounds like the perfect ten prospect, someone who can create chances through a brilliant range of passing, or be the goal threat himself due to his elite close control.
However, while the 16-year-old is unlikely to develop quickly enough to be a genuine rival for Odegaard and Eze, it seems he'll be competing for game time with Dowman and Nwaneri.
Ultimately, while some might worry about the impact he could have on the two Hale Enders, finding enough game time for all three teenagers is a problem Arteta and Arsenal will probably be glad to have.
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