Arsenal have made a real name for themselves as a club that produces superb academy talents and turns them into first-team stars.
Bukayo Saka is the biggest success story from the Arsenal academy setup in recent years, while Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri are not far behind.
Meanwhile, the likes of Reiss Nelson, Emile Smith Rowe and Eddie Nketiah are still playing in the Premier League for other clubs.
TBR Football looks at three Arsenal academy stars who Mikel Arteta should look at in pre-season.
Photo by David Price/David Price / Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Photo by David Price/David Price / Arsenal FC via Getty Images
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Max Dowman likely to have breakthrough season at Arsenal
Starting with the standout candidate from the Hale End setup, Max Dowman has been so impressive that there were calls for him to be handed his debut last season.
Premier League rules meant the 15-year-old was not allowed to play in the top flight during the 2024/25 campaign, but he will be able to feature this season.
Dowman, who can play at No. 8, No. 10 and on the right wing, has already outgrown the Under-18 Premier League.
He netted a staggering 15 goals and five assists from 15 games in the competition.
Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice recently hailed Dowman, deeming him “unreal”, while Lewis-Skelly also tipped Dowman to be the next Arsenal youngster to break into the first team.
Even Rio Ferdinand, a neutral pundit, has sung Dowman’s praises, hailing the Hale End prodigy earlier this year after seeing him at Arsenal’s Dubai warm-weather training camp.
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Marli Salmon and Josh Nichols could be next up in Arsenal defence
Marli Salmon is the next player Arteta must look at in pre-season. Like Dowman, he is 15 years old but is playing at a much higher level.
The young defender, who is said to be in the mould of William Saliba, played for both the Under-18s and the Under-21s last season, and is in the England youth picture.
Salmon, who won the Under-16 Premier League Cup, even featured in the Premier League 2 playoffs for the U21s, turning out alongside players in their late teens and early twenties.
Finally, Josh Nichols is the next player Arteta needs to properly look at, following a solid 2024/25 campaign in which he made his first-team debut.
Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
The Arsenal website has described the 18-year-old as a ‘flying full-back who can operate on the right or the left’.
Meanwhile, Arsenal youth team expert Jeorge Bird has described him as a “hard-working” full-back and an “impressive reader of the game who has good pace”.
Last August, Gabriel Jesus tipped Nichols to have his breakthrough campaign at Arsenal this season.
Although he did not quite make a full breakthrough, he has made his debut, and next season could be the one for the young defender.