Myles Lewis-Skelly has been named in Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Albania and Latvia.
His call-up caps an incredible three months for the 18-year-old, who has cemented himself as Arsenal’s first-choice left-back – a position he only started playing last summer.
At the time of the last Interlull in November, Lewis-Skelly had played for 15 minutes in the Premier League and was captaining England’s under-19s.
His rapid rise to the senior squad mirrors Ashley Cole’s fast-tracked England call-up under Sven-Goran Eriksson in 2001 – though Cole had made four under-21 appearances beforehand.
Arsenal’s other breakthrough star of the season, Ethan Nwaneri, had been tipped to make the senior squad but will settle for promotion to the under-21s, set to be confirmed later. In fairness, he faces stiffer competition in his part of the pitch and is still coming to terms with the physicality of top-level football.
Declan Rice is the only other Arsenal player to be called-up by England.
Tuchel’s first England squad
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace), Jordan Pickford (Everton), Aaron Ramsdale (Southampton), James Trafford (Burnley)
Defenders: Dan Burn (Newcastle United), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Marc Guéhi (Crystal Palace), Reece James (Chelsea), Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Jarell Quansah (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (AC Milan, loan from Manchester City)
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Eberechi Eze (Crystal Palace), Jordan Henderson (Ajax), Curtis Jones (Liverpool), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa)
Forwards: Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa, loan from Manchester United), Dominic Solanke (Tottenham Hotspur)