‘Very few that can cope with that level of demand’ – Arteta delighted with Dowman impact | OneFootball

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has praised the impact of 16-year-old Max Dowman after he inspired his side to a 2-0 win against Everton.

With the game goalless, Dowman was introduced in the 74th minute by Arteta and instantly offered a burst of energy the Gunners had been missing for large periods of the match.

The winger played a major role in the north Londoners breaking the deadlock in the 89th minute as his cross deep into the Everton box was flapped at by Jordan Pickford, hitting Piero Hincapie in the process before the ball rolled into the path of Viktor Gyokeres to tap home.

Then the historic moment, in the 97th minute, with every Everton player up for a late corner, Dowman would pick up the ball near his own penalty area, jink his way between two Everton players before running the length of the pitch and passing the ball into an empty net. That goal confirmed the 16-year-old as the youngest ever goalscorer in Premier League history.

When asked whether he had to ‘trust his gut’ in bring on the youngster, Arteta was in no doubt he had made the right decision.

“I think at the end the decision that you make has to be delivered. If you feel them and you don’t feel it, I think it’s not right, and you just have to see him train every single day honestly.

“Some of the things that he does, he does it against these defenders that are some of the best in the world.

“So he can do it against anybody else and the doubt is always, ‘yeah, but he’s 16 and the crowd and the pressure and expectations,’ but it doesn’t seem to be fazing him very much about that and he gave an incredible moment to all of us.”

The Spaniard also believes the belief the youngster has in himself is the reason why he has become a viable option in the last part of the campaign.

“I think his character, his personality and the fact that, as I said, he doesn’t seem to be fazed by the pressure or his teammates or the opponent.

“I’ve seen a lot of players with talent but at 16, very few that can cope with that level of demand.”