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Jay Emmanuel-Thomas jailed for four years – how an Arsenal prodigy slid into the underworld

Forward, who Arsène Wenger called a ‘massive talent’, given prison sentence after trying to smuggle £600,000 of cannabis into the UK

Former Arsenal player, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas. Picture: PA Images via Getty Images

Former Arsenal player, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas. Picture: PA Images via Getty Images

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Jay Emmanuel-Thomas was the prodigious talent who seemingly had it all.

As a star of the Arsenal academy, the man known as “JET” was tall, powerful, fast and able to score goals with both feet. “He has outstanding qualities,” Arsène Wenger, the former Arsenal manager said in 2010, when Emmanuel-Thomas was 19. “Jay is knocking very hard on my door − with two hands.”

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