If Arsenal win the Premier League title in May, their fans are likely to look back on March 14 as a defining moment in the race to be crowned England’s best club.
Just hours after a 2-0 win over Everton, the Gunners watched as Manchester City dropped points at West Ham on the road.
However, that wasn’t even the best part of the day for the Gunners; Max Dowman’s goal was.
The word generational is thrown around a lot these days but this 16-year-old, a teenager who hasn’t even sat his GCSEs yet, is incredibly talented.
His burst of speed to escape the Everton defense before rolling the ball into an empty net is one of the most memorable moments of the Emirates Stadium. He became the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history in the process.
Where Dowman ranks among Arsenal’s best Hale Enders
Through the doors of the Hale End have walked hundreds and thousands of footballers. Very few have ever become professional footballers, let alone made it to Arsenal.
That’s what makes graduation so special. He belongs again in Dowman, Arsenal have that. However, where does he rank among the best who walked those paths before him?
Well, he should be up there. This no-nonsense youngster was playing U18 football at the age of 13, he is the youngest player in the history of the Champions League and when Ethan Nwaneri beat him he became the youngest player in the history of England’s top flight, he beat the youngest goalscorer.
It is an amazing feat and one that, despite his young age, puts him at the top of the list of players who will enter this institution.
Even players like Bukayo Saka, Jack Wilshere or Cesc Fabregas have played and scored at a young age and just look at them going on to win.
Expectations must be lowered, but when Dowman is compared to the likes of Lionel Messi and Kaka, you know you have a talented and powerful player on your hands.
He is the type of player who sacrifices a lot to make sure he gets to the top of the game.
Who will have to make way for Max Dowman at Arsenal?
This season, the depth of Arsenal’s squad has been declared to be not only the best in the Premier League, but also in Europe. That’s why they are always on track to win four.
That’s also why Dowman’s rise this season has been so remarkable. On Saturday, with the score tied at 0-0, Arteta first turned to Gabriel Martinelli and Viktor Gyokeres but with 16 minutes left, he turned to Dowman.
Three other experienced players were still sitting on the bench at the time namely Ben White, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Gabriel Jesus but they were ignored in favor of a youngster. That shows how good he is.
At the weekend, he moved from the right side of the field where Dowman stood out, first he bent the ball which led to Gyokeres opening the goal and then he scored himself. Last week, the youngster played a key role against Mansfield Town.
That change will no doubt help Dowman get to the top quicker but it also means that a number of players in the Arsenal squad have to look over their shoulders, not least Saka and Noni Madueke who have been battling for a place on the right wing this season.
However, the idea is that the boy’s long-term future follows the striker as a no.10 and that is not only bad news for Nwaneri who had to head to Marseille on loan, but also summer signing Eberechi Eze and club captain Martin Odegaard.
While Eze has enjoyed a run of better form over the past month, there are huge question marks over Odegaard’s future at the Emirates Stadium, question marks that now grow even more so after Dowman’s first Arsenal goal.
There is a sense of irony in this story. Like Dowman, Odegaard burst onto the scene at the age of 15. He earned his first cap for Norway aged 15 years and 253 days and was named as an attacking midfielder, the best thing since sliced ​​bread.
|
Martin Odegaard’s work with numbers |
||
|---|---|---|
|
The team |
Games |
Age at start |
|
Arsenal |
225 |
22 |
|
in Norway |
67 |
15 |
|
Heerenveen |
43 |
18 |
|
Speed |
39 |
19 |
|
Real Sociedad |
36 |
20 |
|
Stromsgodset |
25 |
15 |
|
Real Madrid |
11 |
16 |
Because of this, Arsenal’s young champion could not have a better mentor, but it would not be surprising if the Englishman quickly overtakes the club’s number 8.
Once described as “like Dennis Bergkamp” by Frank Leboeuf, the Norwegian was cut from the same cloth during the 2022/23 campaign. During that time, no Premier League midfielder scored more than 15 goals.
However, since then, the £30m signing has been unable to replicate that performance, especially in the last two seasons.
Despite struggling with an ankle injury last season, the captain finished the campaign with just three goals in 30 league appearances. This season has been terrible. The 27-year-old has once again struggled for fitness but has just one Premier League strike in 20 outings.
On his day, Odegaard is one of the best players you can lay your eyes on but he hasn’t been in the races in recent years. It could be why Mikel Arteta and Andrea Berta were so keen to sign Eze last summer.
However, the former Real Madrid man now has more than just Eze to contend with; Dowman is there too and his strength looks so high that he should be playing ahead of the captain. After all, he has scored more goals in the league this season even though he is only 16.
While it is unlikely that Arteta will drop Odegaard in the summer, his days as a regular starter are over if Dowman’s progress continues to rise.
If the youngster is to realize his potential, then clearing a path to that no.10 spot will be key.
Arsenal have already agreed to sign Max Dowman next in 2027
Max Dowman became the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history on Saturday.
