Myles Lewis-Skelly's debut goal for England is a perfect summation of where Arsenal are at both as a club but also, more specifically, as an academy. The 18-year-old was thrown in by Thomas Tuchel with a first start and appearance for his country.
20 minutes later he was on the scoresheet, popping up inside the opposition box from left-back with all the freedom and intuition that has got him onto the pitch in the first place. Had it not been for injury to Bukayo Saka then Arsenal would have boasted two academy graduates in the squad.
This may not seem like a massive amount but Lewis-Skelly's emergence is indicative of everything Arsenal have been doing well in the past few years. Between himself and Ethan Nwaneri, Mikel Arteta has two first-team quality players from Hale End. That is two players who Arsenal do not have to buy.
Forgetting the age of the pair, purchasing players who possess the attributes and skill of Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri costs tens (if not hundreds) of millions. They are technically excellent, tactically disciplined and versatile, whilst also being mature beyond their years.
Lewis-Skelly has operated in two main roles this season, often doing them in the same game. Nwaneri has done the same. He has had to fill in for Saka and Martin Odegaard, the two most impactful and important players in the squad.
It is a credit to themselves, to Arteta, to the wider playing group, and to the academy that Arsenal have given them both a platform on which they are now thriving. It is also nothing new.
In this weekly series from football.london we are taking a look at Hale End and the role it has to play both for Arsenal, the young players themselves, and also the wider football pyramid. Lewis-Skelly, therefore, could not have picked a better time to make his mark.
Saka has been a trusted senior player for more than six years now. Nwaneri was offered a debut over two years ago. In the meantime Arsenal have leaned on a lower-key set of players to prop up Arteta's squad. This is not to degrade those involved but more to establish that they are not Champions League knockout stage calibre players like Saka.
Although the management and rotation of the starting XI has been questioned, especially since the backend of the 2022/23 season when Arsenal looked to suffer from burnout and were hit hard by William Saliba's injury, using academy graduates has saved the club plenty in transfer fees. Instead of adding depth with players costing millions, they have come from within.
Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri, for example, have played more than Gabriel Jesus, Raheem Sterling, Oleksandr Zinchenko, and Jakub Kiwior this season. Injuries not withstanding, they are simply now players who Arteta has more faith in.
They all command larger wages and cost over £100million to sign. Sterling is on loan but is still a big name and someone on a lot more money than his junior teammates.
Last term, looking outside of Saka as he has already achieved elite status, Reiss Nelson made 15 league appearances, Emile Smith Rowe managed 13, and Eddie Nketiah was a regular substitute and played 27 times with 10 starts. None of them lit the world on fire but all allowed Arsenal to invest elsewhere.
Saka is the gem in all of this but is a once in a generation player. Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly are trying to prove that wrong with their own emergence. What Arsenal have needed for a while has been the second coming of players to provide a bedrock to build on. Then, when the Sakas, Lewis-Skellys, and Nwaneris come along, they are all the more outstanding.
These players are not the target of an academy, though. They are so rare and so unique. It is players like Nelson, Smith Rowe, and Nketiah which Arsenal have needed more of. Ainsley Maitland-Niles is another. Alex Iwobi, to an extent, also.
That is what Hale End is starting to give Arsenal again. Those players who do venture into the senior team either flourish enough to become fully fledged members or are then valuable for others in the football ecosystem. Either way, Arsenal benefit. It should not be forgotten that two of Arsenal's record sales include Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Joe Willock (albeit Oxlade-Chamberlain was signed from Southampton when he was a teenager but still made the club a nice bit of profit).
With Smith Rowe, Nketiah, and also Folarin Balogun generating significant funds, Arsenal's academy is coming back to roost again. Instead of losing out on Serge Gnabry, Arsenal are slowly getting towards a position whereby they can rely on the academy again on a regular basis.
Bukayo Saka, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri of Arsenal during a training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Bukayo Saka, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri of Arsenal during a training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
If it is not with minutes in the Premier League then it is via the money being brought in. There is a prestige of being from the Arsenal academy that helps, as well.
Mika Biereth has become a top-level player since departing, so has Omari Hutchinson. Chido Obi-Martin and Ayden Heaven have impressed at Manchester United - in two deals that still sting - and Max Dowman is now one of the best young players to watch across the entire country.
This is a step up for Arsenal that comes at an ideal time. Not only does Arteta need more players to flesh out his squad but using academy players to either save money on replacements or to bank cash to adhere to strict financial guidelines is increasingly a priority.
The trading of youth players across England is one that has ethical questions attached but it is now more and more common. Arsenal have lost out recently but are showing signs of bearing fruit with those who they do have.
The arrival of Per Mertesacker further down the food chain and Jack Wilshere's time on the coaching staff are evidence of the attempts to streamline matters to help develop more professional players. When those do not thrive at Arsenal, it is still in the club's best interests to see them do well elsewhere.
This is something Hale End can point towards and take as a victory now. From Lewis-Skelly succeeding to Smith Rowe forging a Premier League career at Fulham, it all matters for Arsenal and the continuity of Hale End and the academy landscape.
Harnessing this great asset comes in more than one form. Arsenal have realised that and are delivering on the promise that their players show when coming through the youth pathway. It is the undercurrent to Lewis-Skelly's goal for England and the profits made on player sales.
Arsenal's academy has a major role to play in the club's success one way or another. Utilising it can be the difference between a good and great season, an average or a brilliant few years.
Join the football.london Arsenal WhatsApp channel
Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Jesus with the Arsenal Therapy Dog Win during the Arsenal Men's team group shoot at London Colney on September 18, 2023
Join our Arsenal WhatsApp channel and get all the latest breaking news, opinion, podcasts and in-depth stories from football.london's dedicated Arsenal writers straight to your phone!
By following this free service you will be the first to know the news from the Emirates Stadium as it happens, when it happens.
To join our dedicated Arsenal channel, all you have to do is click this link and you can join thousands of others following our Gunners coverage!
If you're curious, you can check out our privacy policy here.