Arsenal have confirmed that Max Porter has been appointed as the club’s U21 coach on a permanent basis.
Porter had been in interim charge since Mehmet Ali departed earlier this summer to join the first-team coaching staff at Brentford.
Ken Gillard, who has been part of the academy coaching staff for many years, will be Porter’s assistant.
Porter had been assistant to Ali at U21 level for three years and also took charge of the U19s in the UEFA Youth League last season.
Having joined Arsenal’s academy coaching staff in 2017 as coach of the U9s, Porter subsequently stepped up to coach at various levels including U13s and U17s.
Academy manager Per Mertesacker told [Arsenal.com](https://www.arsenal.com/news/max-porter-becomes-under-21s-head-coach): ‘Max has got the qualities needed to be a successful leader and coach. The environment he creates for staff and young players is always one of high challenge and ultimate care.
‘Max is driving the highest standards and is a brilliant colleague and coach. We are all looking forward to supporting Max as he continues to develop in this role, and thank him for all his hard work and commitment so far.’
Arsenal U21s get their campaign underway tonight with a home game against Fulham.
The U21s struggled for much of pre-season in terms of results but had to call upon a younger squad than usual for most of those games. They won 2-0 away to Monaco II last weekend in their final pre-season friendly.