Arsenal told teenager with ‘no fear’ could be ‘perfect’ during title run-in – Keown | OneFootball

Arsenal legend Martin Keown has suggested the club could throw a teenager in during the title run-in, suggesting he “doesn’t experience fear” and could be the “perfect man” to come in and play.

The Gunners have one of the strongest squads in Europe this season, and even bit-part players have had a say in proceedings. Max Dowman, 16, has had success in the first team this term, having looked completely at home during pre-season, when he was still 15.

The creative teen became the youngest player ever to score in the Premier League when he bagged against Everton in March, which was just his third experience in the top flight, after assisting in his first-ever game.

Dowman has also featured in three Champions League games, and with Arsenal’s season now in its most important stages, with a two-point lead on Manchester City in the league and a first Champions League final since 2005/06, Gunners legend Keown feels he could be a perfect player in some of the coming matches.

He was responding to Owen Hargreaves, who told TNT Sports: “He’s a brilliant player. The thing that’s impressed me most about him is his attitude, his mindset. I never see him cheer too much or get too down. He’s so chilled.”

Keown said: “You wonder if this is going to be the season where they give him his wings and throw him in there. We’ve got a succession of No. 10s. [Eberechi] Eze’s a 10, [Martin] Odegaard’s a 10, [Kai] Havertz is a 10 now. Do you throw the youngster in? It’s getting very close now.

“We talked a lot recently about fear, and how that’s a disease in the game. And this is a young man who doesn’t experience fear. So maybe he’s the perfect man on the shelf to bring in and play.”

With the fine margins for Arsenal, throwing a youngster in could go West, and there’s little upside to him playing a few games at the back end of the season, whereas the downside of a mistake at this point could be huge.

Another former Gunner, Theo Walcott, hopes Dowman’s progress isn’t rushed. The winger himself went to a World Cup as a teenager, and hopes Dowman turns down the shock call if it comes from England this summer.

He said: “I hope he doesn’t go. I don’t mean it in a horrible way because if I could go back in time, I would change things. I would say to myself, ‘no, no, don’t do it,’ but then try telling that to a 17-year-old.”