Arsenal have confirmed the signing of 18-year-old defender Elijah Upson.
The England youth international arrives at the Emirates on a free transfer after turning down the offer of a new contract at Sp*rs.
Upson follows in his father Matthew’s footsteps, who also arrived at the club as a teenager. The former Arsenal defender was signed by Arsene Wenger from Luton in 1997 and went on to make 56 appearances for the club, collecting a Premier League medal as part of the Double-winning squad of 2001/02.
The younger Upson is expected to compete for a place in the under-21s this season, although he will also be eligible to feature in the UEFA Youth League.
With Gabriel Magalhaes, William Saliba and Piero Hincapie all still away following their World Cup commitments, there’s every chance he’ll get the opportunity to train with Mikel Arteta’s first-team squad over the coming weeks as pre-season ramps up.
Speaking after completing the move, Arsenal’s new No. 57 said: “It’s a great feeling, really proud to be here, really nice to have all my family and everyone around it, it’s been a great experience.
“My dad signed here around the same time as me, it’s great to have someone with a good experience of the place. But at the same time, I’m definitely looking forward to building my own reputation and getting started.
“When I met the guys here recently and met all the team and staff, it just seemed like a really nice environment. That was probably the biggest factor: an environment where you feel you can hopefully learn and get better as a person.”