Image for Arsenal Wonderkid To West Ham? There’s One Big Problem
Image for Arsenal Wonderkid To West Ham? There’s One Big Problem
By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)
West Ham have been backed to enter the race to sign Arsenal wonderkid Max Dowman on loan in January.
The highly-rated 16-year-old becomes eligible for a loan move when he turns 17 on December 31, with more than a dozen clubs reportedly having already contacted Arsenal about his availability.
Mikel Arteta has left the door open to a temporary move, saying Arsenal will assess what is best for Dowman every six months, taking into account the minutes he is playing and the quality of those minutes.
Dowman is an exquisite talent
Dowman is undoubtedly an exquisitely talented player, and clearly one who is highly regarded by Gooners boss Mikel Arteta.
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He has a versatility to his game, and I’ve certainly seen him play centrally, but in the main he has been utilised as a right-sided attacker.
Problem for West Ham? Well, that’s exactly where our captain Jarrod Bowen plays.
I’m not averse to loaning players from Champions League clubs. After all, we currently have Divine Mukasa from Manchester City, and that particular loan could hardly have worked out better so far.
But not only is Mukasa a former West Ham Academy player, he’s also arguably the best attacking midfielder currently at the club.
Jarrod Bowen is the first name on the team-sheet at West Ham
Would Arsenal really send him to West Ham?
Were Dowman to arrive on loan, we couldn’t realistically expect him to start ahead of Jarrod Bowen, who is spearheading our push for Championship promotion.
Don’t get me wrong, I would be well up for the Gunners youngster sitting on the West Ham substitutes bench, but would that realistically benefit Arsenal or the player himself?
The answer to that is no.
Arteta is going to want his most talented youngster to get game time with guaranteed starts, and I’m just not sure that happens at West Ham.
There is certainly an argument that West Ham could use additional cover on the right-hand side, particularly during a long Championship season. But there’s a significant difference between providing cover for Bowen and giving Arsenal’s most prized youngster the regular football he’d presumably be sent out on loan to get.