When the news of Chido Obi-Martin’s expected exit from Arsenal broke, the feeling outside of the north London club centred in a certain direction.
Not again. Another prolific academy talent finding its way off the Hale End conveyor belt and into the hands of a Premier League side.
You see, a pattern could be surmised after other recent departures. The Obi-Martin situation is complex and Arsenal’s push to future-proof the club through utilising academy talent to the first team, or making profit through sales where necessary, is going on behind the scenes, yet the highly-touted midfielder Amario Cozier-Duberry and defender Reuell Walters sealed moves to Brighton and Luton Town respectively earlier this month.
Mail Sport understands Arsenal offered both players a new deal, with their contracts expiring, and outlined to them what their futures looked like at the club.
Cozier-Duberry and Walters listened, though decided a move elsewhere would be better for their careers and a faster way into first-team football.
Arsenal starlet Chido Obi-Martin looks set to leave the club this summer
Arsenal have already lost exciting young talent Amario Cozier-Duberry (pictured) to Brighton
Reuell Walters (pictured) has also departed Arsenal to join Luton Town this summer
Both the club and players parted ways amicably, the moves satisfying all parties involved. But with Obi-Martin, the feeling within Arsenal is different.
The interest in the 16-year-old reached levels unusual for a player of that age because of his record-breaking performances in the academy.
The forward, 6ft 2in and physically imposing for his tender years, scored 32 goals in 18 Arsenal Under-18 matches — a club record. But it was his 10 goals against Liverpool Under-16s in November, aged just 15, that really snatched the headlines and inflated the excitement around him.
Mail Sport revealed in the days after that the FA were exploring options of luring Obi-Martin back to representing England. He has featured for the youth sides of both Denmark – his country of birth – and England this year.
So everyone — not least the Arsenal hierarchy — were aware of Obi-Martin’s talents and keen to keep him at the club. It is why the following events have left some club figures disappointed.
Mail Sport understands that Arsenal had offered Obi-Martin Under-18s football, with playing time for the Under-21s where schedule allows — and to elevate to training with the first team as the season goes on.
Though Obi-Martin’s camp supposedly wanted the forward to skip the Under-18s to join the Under-21s immediately. That was a problem — but the dealbreaker, allegedly, was the money.
His camp supposedly wanted a sum of money which was very far away from what Arsenal were willing to pay. So the Gunners walked away despite liking the player’s ability and him personally.
Obi-Martin caught the eye on many occasions and netted 10 goals against Liverpool
He will now depart Arsenal, but Mail Sport understands his exit is not financially motivated
Meanwhile, Emile Smith Rowe is another academy graduate leaving Arsenal to join Fulham
As ever, there are two sides to a story. From the Obi-Martin side, Mail Sport understands the decision to depart Arsenal wasn’t financially motivated.
He and his team had doubts over his potential way into the first team and the project the club had mapped out. A complex situation, indeed.
Arsenal’s regard for Obi-Martin is reflected by the fact Mail Sport understands that Mikel Arteta spoke to him and the player’s team about his pathway to the first team and how he would be developed.
With Obi-Martin on his way out, and Manchester United strongly linked, the attention turns to the futures of Arsenal’s current academy graduates.
Club executives are privately pleased about the money their academy has yielded, and is set to yield in the coming weeks.
Graduate Emile Smith Rowe is joining Fulham for £35million — a club record sale. His contemporaries Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah have been linked with moves elsewhere, too.
If the pair do leave, the sums will likely be in excess of £10million and £35million respectively. A further remind of the importance of building a solid pathway. If a player does not make into the first team, that doesn’t equate to wasted time or a loss as financial benefit can be recouped.
Though more broadly a common perception is that Arteta is averse to using academy players in the first team.
This reached fever pitch last season in Arsenal’s dead-rubber Champions League match against PSV Eindhoven in December, the Gunners having already secured top spot in their group.
Ethan Nwaneri, Lino Sousa and Walters all travelled to Eindhoven and made the bench. But none of them came on. It appeared baffling, and not the first time an opportunity to play a youngster had been spurned.
Yet Mail Sport understands Arteta personally feels a heavy responsibility for the welfare of academy players.
Mikel Arteta has received criticism for his use of Arsenal's young stars
He took a young squad for Arsenal's dead-rubber against PSV Eindhoven last season, but proceeded to name a strong starting XI and did not use his younger stars off the bench
If a player is rushed too quickly into first team football, he fears of the long-term effect it can have on a player.
Arteta is also acutely aware that it is him that the blame is squared on if it goes wrong, something he can do without when already facing the daily pressures of needing to win, week in, week out.
Going into this campaign, it is Nwaneri who is likely to be the next cab off the rank.
The 17-year-old is liked by Arteta and has been around the first team for what feels like a good while, despite his young age.
Arteta made the teenager the youngest player in Premier League history, substituting him on against Brentford in September 2022 aged just 15 years and 181 days.
Since then he has regularly trained with the first team but barely given first team minutes. He did, though, come on in Arsenal’s 6-0 thrashing of West Ham in February — the only current academy player to feature for the first team last season in the league.
The north London club’s pre-season tour of the US so far has already hinted at what Nwaneri’s first team involvement will be in the upcoming campaign.
Against Bournemouth last Wednesday, he was the last starting outfield player to be substituted. Arteta made seven substitutions on the hour mark, including Jurrien Timber, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira, but not Nwaneri.
Those around the club believe this could well be Nwaneri’s real breakthrough season. He is mature beyond his years and Arteta sees the potential in him.
Ethan Nwaneri (left) has stood out in pre-season and the Premier League's youngest-ever player could make a breakthrough into the first team this season
Myles Lewis-Skelly (pictured) has also impressed and could be in line for more game time
Myles Lewis-Skelly is another academy player fans could hear plenty about in the coming months.
Typically a midfielder, behind the scenes Arteta has been moulding Lewis-Skelly into an inverted left back. A Oleksandr Zinchenko prototype, you could say.
It was the position he started in against Bournemouth in Los Angeles.
The 17-year-old stood out, both in his defensive work — putting in well-timed tackles — but also his ease at inverting into midfield on attacks.
If there are injuries again in the backline, Lewis-Skelly goes right into contention for a spot either on the first-team bench or line-up.
It remains to be seen how Obi-Martin fares at his next club. But what is for certain is that at Arsenal, their academy is bearing fruits in the form of pound notes and the odd gem, too.