23yo former Arsenal youngster signs for Carlisle United | OneFootball

The 23-year-old made one senior Arsenal appearance before spells with Atletico Baleares, PAS Giannina and Morecambe.

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Miguel Azeez has signed for Carlisle United on a two-year deal, with the former Arsenal midfielder making another permanent move as he looks to rebuild his career after leaving Hale End.

Carlisle have paid Morecambe an undisclosed fee for the 23-year-old, who becomes the first playing addition under Rob Elliot at Brunton Park.

Azeez joined Arsenal’s academy at the age of five and was regarded as one of Hale End’s more technically gifted midfielders during his development. He was used across the centre of the pitch, as a 6, 8 and 10, with academy staff reportedly seeing elements of a deep-lying playmaker in the Sergio Busquets mould.

For all that promise, his senior Arsenal career amounted to one competitive appearance, which came on 10 December 2020 when he came off the bench in the Europa League win away to Dundalk.

A series of loans followed before he left Arsenal permanently in 2024, signing for Atletico Baleares on a free transfer and then PAS Giannina in Greece six months later before returning to England with Morecambe in 2025.

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Azeez said Carlisle’s ambition and support were important factors in his decision to join the club.

“(I am) really happy, thank you for the welcome,” he said to the official Carlisle United website. I really can’t wait to get started, and I feel like it’s going to be a good season for all of us.

“When I first heard about the interest, I was really happy that a club with that magnitude could be interested in me.”

In that interview, Azeez said his years at Arsenal shaped him both on and off the pitch. “I was there from the age of five until around 20, 21,” he explained.

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“So, it was my schooling of football, and I’d say I learned a lot from great players and also just certain things like discipline and being driven, and if you want to reach your goals, you need to sacrifice certain things.”

His time away from Arsenal on loan, and later abroad after leaving the club, also helped shape his development.

“I was playing in different countries at a young age,” he added about his time with UD Ibiza which came in between loans with Portsmouth and Wigan. “So, it made me adapt to my surroundings, and also being in a place which is not home could be quite difficult.

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“I feel like if you are mentally strong, which it did challenge me sometimes, but it eventually made me stronger, and I feel like now nothing can really shape me in a negative way because I’ve had lots of up and down experiences, but it was an interesting period of my life.”

Azeez made clear that he still sees himself as a midfielder who wants to take responsibility in possession.

“I love playing in the midfield and getting on the ball and making things happen,” he said.

“I’m a player with a lot of courage. I like to get the ball in difficult situations.”

He also acknowledged that the defensive side of his game has had to develop with experience.

“It’s one of the aspects of my game which I try to work on a lot because it’s always good to have both sides of the game.

“Coming up at Arsenal as well, it’s very technical and tactical possession-based, but they don’t really teach you a lot of the other side of the game, which I had to learn the more I got older, which I feel like now it’s getting better and better.”