‘He was one of the best kept secrets in academy football’ – Max Dowman’s former academy coach on youngster’s rise into the Arsenal first-team picture | OneFootball

Arsenal’s pre-season tour of Asia has stirred plenty of excitement with several new signings, including big-money striker Viktor Gyokeres, on show, but perhaps the biggest buzz has been around the performances of 15-year-old Max Dowman.

Since Mikel Arteta’s bold decision to hand Ethan Nwaneri his debut at 15 in September 2022, only Leicester City’s Jeremy Monga has followed suit in playing in the Premier League at that age.

But Dowman is quickly making a strong case for a Premier League breakthrough of his own.

The attacking midfielder was a regular presence in first-team training last season, participated in the mid-season warm weather training camp in Dubai, and has hit the ground running with impressive showings for the first team in pre-season against AC Milan and Newcastle United.

Dowman scored 19 goals in 23 appearances in all competitions last season across Arsenal’s youth teams, including becoming the youngest player to ever score in the UEFA Youth League.

Temisan Williams coached Dowman at U11 level at Arsenal, where the youngster quickly stood out after a season and progressed through the age groups ahead of schedule.

“He was probably one of the best kept secrets in academy football,” Williams told Hayters.

“I knew and others knew about Max from 2019, if not before, so that’s where no one heard about him, but of course, rightly so, because he was only nine, ten years of age.

“But when I got to Arsenal, I was told there’s a boy here who’s top quality, even from that age, and I hadn’t coached him in my first year because he was two years below. Max was always ready for challenges.”

Williams, who has now launched his own ‘Coach Accelerator Masterclass Community’, a platform designed to support coaches aiming to break into academy football, has seen plenty of talented players pass through the academy system and end up not making it.

But Williams has no doubt that Dowman is firmly on the right track.

“His mindset was always, I want to push myself, and you could see that,” Williams continued. “It also helped that physically, he could cope with the challenge above, so his physical profile allowed him to cope, and of course, his super strength, which we are seeing on the world stage now, is his ability to carry the ball with his left foot.

“That’s always been the case with Max, and usually what is your super strength from when you’re younger is going to be the one that gets you into the first team and keeps you there.”

And it was Dowman’s left foot that garnered plenty of attention against Newcastle last week – weaving through players twice his age, slipping past Joelinton, and winning the decisive penalty that Martin Odegaard dispatched to seal a 3-2 win.

Dowman wins a penalty against Newcastle (Photo by Yong Teck Lim/Getty Images) via ONE FOOTBALL

“As Arsene Wenger says, and he has a quote around the fact that at some point, everyone gets to the same kind of level, but it’s the stamina and your motivation that will take you beyond, and of course, he’s had this from an early age and this early exposure,” Williams added.

“He’s getting into first-team football, which of course, many don’t at 15 years of age. Max is definitely, from a mentality perspective, he’s ready, willing to learn and wants that new challenge, and has shown that he can handle it, and it’s just a matter of time, hopefully, before he’ll be able to cement his position in the first team in a couple of years.

“There’s a lot of growing for him still to do. He will be with the U21s consistently next season, but I’m sure he will be with the first team in some regards as well.”

Despite Arteta facing early criticism for overlooking academy prospects during his early time in charge, the emergence of Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly has since sent a clear message to the next generation at Hale End – that the pathway to Arsenal’s first team is open.

Williams revealed that the Arsenal manager has shown a genuine interest in all levels of the academy, having previously made visits to the U12s to engage with coaches and gain first-hand insight into the club’s development philosophy and the playing styles being instilled.

“What I love and I always remember is, [Arteta] used to come to training, even U12s, he would be there, he’d be looking,” Williams explained. “He would talk to me and the other coaches, and he would see Max at that time as well, just as an U12 player and the others such as Marli [Salmon], etc.

“It was great to see how connected he was and continues to be with the academy, and we are seeing that pathway. It’s really encouraging when you’re at a club where the first team manager is really interested in seeing players coming through the academy.”

Dowman has developed a close relationship with Declan Rice, who described him as the “best 15-year-old in the world” earlier this year, taking him under his wing and offering a glowing endorsement that suggests he is likely to see increased involvement with the senior squad this season.

While the future looks bright, there is a clear sense of caution about pushing too quickly. Dowman featured in just one PL2 match for the U21s last season and is expected to spend more time at that level as he gradually integrates into the first-team setup.

Watch our full interview with Temisan Williams on our YouTube channel at midday on Saturday.