Myles Lewis-Skelly faces huge competition for a midfield place, but Arsenal may have every reason to lean on him heavily in the weeks ahead.
Myles Lewis-Skelly could have a bigger role to play for Arsenal at the start of the season than perhaps first expected.
Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi and Bruno Guimaraes will all expect to start once they’re fully fit, but right now Lewis-Skelly has something they don’t. A full pre-season behind him, and the rhythm that comes with it.
However, the 3-0 Community Shield win over Manchester City offered a glimpse of why Arteta should trust the 19-year-old while the rest of his midfield eases back to full fitness.
Lining up next to Guimaraes, Lewis-Skelly wasted no time in making his mark. Within 24 seconds, he let the ball run across his body and picked out Riccardo Calafiori with a clever reverse pass, setting up Arsenal’s opener.
The assist may have been the standout moment, but it was only the start. Lewis-Skelly looked at home in midfield against one of Arsenal’s biggest rivals, using the ball well, holding his own physically and carrying over the confidence he’d shown all pre-season.
Lewis-Skelly has made a strong case to start in Arsenal's season opener [REUTERS]
Lewis-Skelly has made a strong case to start in Arsenal's season opener [REUTERS]
Despite not having received a call-up himself, the World Cup may have helped further his cause for a starting spot in Arsenal’s midfield.
Zubimendi came back late after lifting the trophy with Spain, while Rice was handed extra time off after England’s run to third place. Guimaraes returned sooner after Brazil’s Round of 16 exit, but had to finalise his move from Newcastle and only managed three training sessions before his Arsenal debut against Como.
Lewis-Skelly, on the other hand, has been present and available for whatever has been asked of him through pre-season. Arteta praised that flexibility and his consistency following the draw against Como:
“I think he had a really good preseason. I think we asked him to play in a different position because he played more as a six because we lacked all the midfielders obviously with international duties and I think he had a really consistent preseason.”
That kind of continuity could be priceless in the early weeks.
There’s no need to push Rice, Zubimendi or Guimaraes into heavy minutes while they get back up to speed. Lewis-Skelly is ready now. Whether he starts, plays an hour or comes on late, Arsenal can rely on him without overburdening those still catching up after a disrupted summer.
Arsenal’s Midfield Competition Is Fierce
Nobody’s pretending the battle for places will be straightforward.
Rice is usually the first name on Arsenal’s team sheet when he’s fit, and to be fair, last season, even when he wasn’t fully fit, a sign of the England international’s quality. Zubimendi was ever-present during the Gunners season as they fought deep into all four competitions, with only Rice and David Raya clocking up more minutes. Now, there’s Bruno Guimaraes, a £75 million arrival from Newcastle, who comes with high expectations and a price tag to match what Arsenal expect from him.
Then there is Lewis-Skelly. A player who, at the end of last season, Arteta was comfortable starting for one of the biggest games in Arsenal’s history.
Having four players for what’s usually two deeper midfield spots is a rare luxury. Arsenal now have the best midfield depth in the league, and one of the best in the world, when you look at the quality available in depth. Few clubs can rotate like the Gunners without losing quality.
And it’s not as if the competition further forward is any less fierce.
Captain Martin Odegaard is still the go-to in the advanced midfield role, but Eze, Nwaneri and Merino all offer alternatives. Merino can drop deeper, Eze can drift in from the left, and suddenly Arsenal have options to suit the opponent or the moment.
Lewis-Skelly fits right into that flexible approach.
Asked about his role before the Community Shield, Arteta deliberately avoided tying him to one position.
“It depends what happens with the squad, how he trains and the position. There are a lot of players that can play in various positions, and this is a huge quality we have in the squad.”
That doesn’t mean giving up on Lewis-Skelly as a midfielder.
He’s shown at the end of last season and again this summer why midfield should be his main role. But if injuries hit, as they have before, Arteta knows Lewis-Skelly can step in at left-back and not look out of place.
It’s another way to keep him involved without locking him into one position.
Arsenal Should Make the Most of Lewis-Skelly Now
Lewis-Skelly has a long career ahead of him. At 19, he would already walk into the starting XI at plenty of other Premier League clubs based on his current ability, before even considering where he could be as he continues to develop.
At Arsenal, his main problem is the level of competition. The Gunners have just added another player competing for his spot and, with Rice, Zubimendi and Guimaraes all around, it could still be some time before Lewis-Skelly becomes a permanent fixture on the team sheet.
As fans, we want him to stick it out. His time should come to become one of the main players in this side, but that is much easier to say from the outside when he is the one who needs regular football.
In the meantime, Arteta should make the most of the position Lewis-Skelly is in heading into the new season. He has the ability, he has a full pre-season in his legs, and right now he is in better condition than some of the players who would normally start ahead of him.
There should be no reason for the Gunners to ask Rice and Zubimendi to run themselves into the ground again after making 55 and 57 appearances respectively last season. The depth is there now to manage those workloads better.
That should mean starts for Lewis-Skelly, particularly through the opening weeks when the midfield selection dilemma is made slightly easier by players still working their way back to full fitness.
Left-back remains another option if Arsenal really need him there, but with Hincapie and Calafiori both fit and available, that should probably be a last resort rather than the plan.
Midfield is where Lewis-Skelly should get his opportunities. Arsenal have four excellent options for two positions, and having the 19-year-old ready to play from the start of the season is something Arteta should take advantage of.