I thought we might be interested in him on loan if we think he can still be a LB as a) we need one b) there aren't many around currently c) he's English and Moyes likes having that core to his teams and d) he can play at CM if needed. There's also the addage that you might do what you have done with Nwaneri and try to get a loan to see if he can prove he can play for you before selling him on as the HG factor is good for you.
Myles Lewis-Skelly
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I mean, surely you can see the difference with Patino that was hyped at youth level but never actually made a senior appearance in the league for Arsenal, and players like Nwaneri who scored 9 goals across all comps aged 17/18, never mind what Dowman is doing at 16?
That would be the perfect scenario for me with both players. I'm hoping this is just speculation, but unless we really need the money, then there should be no rush to decide their futures now from our point of view, and also their point of view, unless they feel they have been promised something to make them sign deals and Arteta has reneged on that.
More like Lingard and Cole.
He is not alone in shining at youth level, plenty have done it and amounted to feck all.
Will post this again. This is why Utd might be considering him. The change to how fullbacks like O'Reilly operate, makes players like Skelly more valuable as they can move into midfield when the team have the ball and play as a CM. Allowing the actual CMs to join the attack and create overloads as O'Reilly does for City.
Still don't think we are actually interested.
But he has also played half a season (last year) in men’s football and looked very good.
Damn that's a deep cut, Larnel fecking Cole man
He's barely played this season which is where those stats come from. If you can see he's got excellent ball retention then oh well.
Coaches somehow believe it makes sense to play underperforming or mediocre experienced players than uber talented youngsters all the time. He was excellent last season out of position, even earned a national team call up and played well. Suddenly he doesn't get a look in, none of that really makes sense.
Arsenal are a strange team anyways, there's a reason they play such horrible football. They don't even have full backs at the organisation.
So good that he hardly gets a look in this season.
It's Arteta alone that decides the line up, and there could be hundreds of reasons for why he doesn't play him.
There was a period under ten Hag where we played McTominay instead of Casemiro. Managers make dumb decisions all the time. Lewis-Skelly is 19, by the way.
Califiori and Hincapie are ahead of him at LB, Rice is ahead of him in his preferred position and he’s a teenager.
I really like Calafiori at left back, he gives a good balance of being good on the ball vs being good of the ball. As much as I like Hincapie as well, he's much more weighted to the latter, and I feel it hinders our attacking play.
It's ok Arsenal fans, you're more than welcome to keep him.
I honestly think he lacks acceleration to work as a top class fullback. I've seen him getting outpaced and rinsed by several fullbacks on speed/acceleration alone. Transitioning into a midfield role isn't necessarily easy either, even if he played there for the academy. Skeptical.
Excellent, everybody’s happy
Apart from Lewis Skelly, who will continue to not get a kick playing for a man who lines up with 4 CBs and 2 DMs in every match.Excellent, everybody’s happy
Excellent, everybody’s happy
I would think so. Seems pretty unanimous that the majority don't want him.
Redcafe don't want him, so he won't be signed.
Yes because they have actual LBs ahead of him in the pecking order and he’s still a very young player. He has shown he can play the men’s game is my point. Or sorry should all highly rated 19 year olds be starting for premier league leaders week in week out?
So wait, you do rate him, then?
Tbh, I doubt there's anything in the links. Feels more like the work of an agent trying to put pressure on Arsenal to give him more playing time.
But, believe it or not, anyone I've spoken to outside of RedCafe also aren't into this transfer. My brother is an Arsenal fan and he doesn't really understand why we would be interested, especially given he'll cost a fair whack.
Guess I shouldn’t be surprised we talk about an 18 year old like he’s the finished article and has no chance to develop further when you look at the way we discuss a Kobbie Mainoo who is still a couple of weeks away from turning 21.
No need to apologise,
You just have to realise there is a huge gap between hardly playing and playing week in and week out.
Very talented player but not convinced that he’s a player we should be targeting as a left back. Very young still so might iron out some of his flaws, but you’d rather see him deployed in midfield and I don’t see him as the midfielder we need - especially as we’ve already got Mainoo’s development to manage effectively.
You could argue MLS’s versatility is a huge asset but I’m not sure it would represent the best form of squad building.
Arsenal will never sell to a top PL side anyway so all a moot point really!
You could argue MLS’s versatility is a huge asset but I’m not sure it would represent the best form of squad building.
Arsenal will never sell to a top PL side anyway so all a moot point really!
If they are willing to listen for offers for him then the highest offers presumably will be from the top PL sides so do you think they will only entertain bids from the others?
Timeline is off by me, for sure - my bad. Nwaneri would have been the first we tried to poach from you. Maybe I'm mixing up the contract situation with the pro deal, but I'm so sure we were in his ear before his pro deal.
It seems a bit odd the Nwaneri situation to be honest. Dowman is clearly the bigger talent though, but I just don't get how Nwaneri hasn't got more minutes. The Skelly situation is just a case of incorrectly profiled, in my opinion.
I read somewhere (not sure how accurate it is) that Arsenal wanted around £100 million for Myles-Skelly and Nwaneri combined, to let them leave. So if that is anything to go by - we can expect Arsenal to start negotiating around £50 million - and would probably accept £35-40 million. Not really sure what I think of it
Yes I read something similar.
Like you I am unsure about him. I haven’t seen much of him for a while but the last memories I have are that he was defensively a weak link for Arsenal. I have a niggling concern about his attitude as well, maybe overly cocky. Perhaps his time out of the team might have cured that.
As I posted somewhere else, Arsenal-fans wanting to keep him feels he should be used as a midfielder where he apparently played at lower levels. And that sort of makes sense because when I see him play, I get a bit of TAA-vibes about him. Very good going forward, but questionable defensively. So maybe he could be a good squad-player - but to be quite honest, I am not sure.
Heaven was playing as a midfielder at youth level for Arsenal so I wonder how he was looked upon by the Arsenal fans in that role?
Why are people assuming we want to sign him for LB?
We might have spoke through intermediaries and said we'd prefer him in CM, which he might prefer. A bit like Heaven playing CM for Arsenal academy but wanting to play CB.
We might have spoke through intermediaries and said we'd prefer him in CM, which he might prefer. A bit like Heaven playing CM for Arsenal academy but wanting to play CB.
Heaven was younger when he played midfield. By the time he came on pre-season tour (which was the closest he came to our first team) he was a defender.
Lewis-Skelly was midfielder throughout his time in our academy. He got a couple games at LB just before he broke into the first team. It seems that Arteta saw the numerous injuries we were getting at LB at the time and asked our U21 Head Coach to play him there in anticipation of that being the position where he’d have a chance to break through.
Unless a team really wanted to play with an inverted LB, I can’t see them buying him to play in defence - I don’t think he’s at the level to play there long term. And I don’t see the point in United buying him while Mainoo is at the club. I think you could only develop one of them, certainly if Bruno is staying.
Thank you for the insight
No problem at all.Thank you for the insight
I know that Arsenal fans don’t have the best reputation, but the vast majority of those on here and that I know in real life are pretty normal. It feels like a couple bellends on AFTV back in the day have done a number on us.
Always good to hear an opinion from someone that is genuinely in the know and not some post from a nobody that just wants the clicks.
It was Mertesacker that moved him to centre back as he physically developed. He was just seeing his route to the first team blocked in that role at Arsenal.
And with all that said he is now starting at LB for a crucial game in our bid to win our first title in 22 years.