The British Telegraph reported that Arsenal's 15-year-old player Daoman's ability left a deep impression on the team. Perhaps in the past, Arsenal coach Arteta would try to downplay the outside world's pursuit of Doman. After all, this y...
The British Telegraph reported that Arsenal's 15-year-old player Daoman's ability left a deep impression on the team.
Perhaps in the past, Arsenal coach Arteta would try to downplay the outside world's pursuit of Doman. After all, this youth training young player is only 15 years old, and it is not easy to manage his growing enthusiasm around him. But since the beginning of the year, Arteta and Arsenal have clearly realized that it is meaningless to cover up Dorman's strength. Therefore, in the second half of last season, the young coach not only did not avoid the question about the young attacker, but instead took the initiative to build momentum for him. When asked about the offensive midfield position in May, Arteta said that "Doman will soon be making his mark", and a few weeks later when talking about rookies who may have an impact next season, he called Doman again: "He will likely be involved in pre-season preparations."
For any junior player, entering the first team is a major leap, let alone a junior who is still one year away from the GCSE (British Secondary Education Regular Certificate). But Arsenal firmly believes that Doman is ready. Not only did he participate in last week's Spanish training camp with the team, but now he also starts a trip to Singapore and Hong Kong with the club. In Arsenal's first 1-0 victory over AC Milan in the first preseason game, Doman, who came on the bench for 65 minutes, almost scored with a low shot. The acuity and adaptability he showed when holding the ball was impressive, and even confidently scored the sixth goal in the scheduled penalty shootout.
The frequent contact with the first team in the past few months has laid the foundation for Doman. He regularly practiced with the adult team last season and participated in the Dubai training camp in February. If it weren't for the Premier League's regulations that prohibit U16 players from participating in adult team games, he could have been on the roster last season.
The teammates who watched the Aisle Mann training up close were as excited as fans who had seen their online highlights. Rice praised in March: "He is simply incredible, he is the best 15-year-old player in the UK." Arteta also sighed: "Some of his performance in training is incredible."
Why is the eight-year-old left-footed attacking midfielder who joined Arsenal so amazing? His extraordinary resume is enough to illustrate the problem: he became the youngest player in the Gunners U18 at the age of 13, broke the U21 tier record at the age of 14, and became the youngest goal scorer in the history of the European Youth League in September last year. The English youth team is also shining, completing its U17 debut at the age of 14 and scoring. This summer, the U17 European Youth Championship was the youngest player in the game, and scored a wonderful individual goal against the Czech Republic.
For many Gunners fans, the quarterfinals of the FA Youth Cup against Manchester United in February are a moment of awakening. In the U18 match at Emirates Stadium, Doman showed a level far beyond his peers, forcing his opponent to repeatedly foul the back. His ability to break through the high-speed dribble is particularly eye-catching, and the scenes where he has exceeded several people in succession to create shooting opportunities. In April, he scored twice from the middle circle for a long-distance raid.
When the Daily Telegraph observed Doman's European Youth League game for the first time last October, the young player who came on the bench turned around and broke through the Paris left-back to win a free kick, and he made the same move after a few seconds. Obviously, this supernova with both accurate long passes and double-footed heavy artillery has long surpassed the U18 level. Last season, under age restrictions, he wore the captain's armband and scored 14 goals in seven games, repeatedly dominating the game.
But Arsenal and Dowman both know that the success of the youth team does not guarantee the glory of their careers. Genius boys face many challenges, and clubs need to protect their growth while cultivating players. Rice's March evaluation was quite meaningful: "I often communicate with Doman, and he is lucky to have excellent family support. 15 years old has a long way to go. The best at the moment may not mean that he is still outstanding at the age of 18, and he must keep hunger and continue to improve."
Arsenal and Arteta hope to build an ideal platform for Doman to help him realize this amazing talent one day.
