It was reported yesterday by The Telegraph that Arsenal U21 coach Max Porter is set to leave the club to become part of the first-team coaching staff at Stoke City.
Porter had only been in charge of the U21s for a season, having been promoted from his position as assistant following Mehmet Ali’s move to Brentford.
Although there were a few good moments, matters didn’t go to plan for Arsenal U21s last season as they ended up finishing in 14th place in Premier League 2 and were then beaten by Manchester City in the playoffs.
There were also concerns over some of the performances, with Arsenal lacking dynamism in their play at times.
Porter had worked his way up from coaching Arsenal at U9 level and had received a lot of praise for the work that he did as assistant for the U21s.
Arsenal will now be on the lookout for their sixth U21 coach since 2018.
There are several options if another internal hire is considered, with David Horseman and Ken Gillard part of the U21 coaching setup, while Adam Birchall is in charge of the U18s.
Given the difficulties that Arsenal have endured in terms of performances and results at academy level of late, an external hire will probably be the best decision.
It will be very interesting to see who Arsenal choose to succeed Porter, although whoever is appointed will be aware that they will have to work within the framework of the playing style deployed by the first-team.
—
Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird