EXCLUSIVE: Arsenal put faith in Hale End kid Reuell Walters with 2023/24 first-team role

Steve Kay

• Updated: 18 Aug 2023 12:20 BST
• 3 min read

Exclusive

Arsenal are ready to abandon their pursuit of a right-back in the summer transfer window in order to give Hale End academy talent Reuell Walters more first-team minutes next season.

The Gunners have been linked with moves for players such as Ivan Fresneda of Real Valladolid and Southampton’s Tino Livramento in the summer transfer window, but the thoughts of head coach Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu are increasingly turning towards the youngster, who only turned 18 in December.

Arsenal want a young, up-and-coming player in the right-back role and not necessarily an established name. With that in mind, the plan is not to spend a great amount of money in that position – if anything at all.

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The priority at the Emirates Stadium is to invest in the midfield, where Declan Rice is known to be interested in a move to the club.

Arteta this season has been massively impressed by Walters, who was named in the first-team squad against Crystal Palace in a 4-1 win and was also on the bench for the victory over Leeds.

He is a typical Mikel Arteta player as he is very versatile and can play anywhere across the back four. His main position for Arsenal’s youth team is as a right-back and he has impressed sufficiently to win three caps for England U19.

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Walters to continue Hale End tradition

Arsenal are a club that has long been renowned for its academy production, and with the Gunners flying high at the top of the Premier League, five points clear of Manchester City, that remains the case.

The title challenge of Arteta’s side has been spearheaded by Bukayo Saka, who is a player proven to have the potential to become the very best in the world, while the team is also supplemented by talent such as Emile Smith Rowe, Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah.

Having been on the fringes of the action in recent weeks, Walters, who featured in the pre-season tour of the US, is set to be given more responsibility next season.