Myles Lewis-Skelly: Age, height, nationality, parents, contract and stats

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·5 December 2023

Myles Lewis-Skelly: Age, height, nationality, parents, contract and stats

Myles Lewis-Skelly is strongly considered as one of Arsenal's most promising talents. From shining in the FA Youth Cup to featuring in the Champions League matchday squad against Lens, the hierarchy at the Gunners have been fixated on his talent.

Arsenal have a reputation for producing world-class talent from their academy. Ashley Cole, Ray Parlour and Cesc Fàbregas all graduated from the academy. All three went on to be crucial players for the North London side over the years.

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Under Jack Wilshere's guidance in the youth teams, there is hope that Lewis-Skelly can be the next star to break onto the main stage. The Arsenal youth team reached the final of the FA Youth Cup last season, losing to West Ham at the Emirates Stadium, yet Lewis-Skelly shone throughout the tournament. He has 'things you can't coach,' the coach suggested about Lewis-Skelly after the victory against Cambridge United.

Arsenal have been enjoying a renaissance under Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard has transformed the club from a team languishing in eighth to now fighting for Premier League glory. A huge part of that has been his use of young players. Bukayo Saka - a Hale End prodigy - has been the poster boy of the club's success, whilst a plethora of other youngsters have helped Arsenal return to the Champions League. It motivates the youth players at the club, knowing there is a manager at the club who is prepared to give players chances.

Age and Height

Lewis-Skelly was born on the 26th of September 2006. It means he is currently just 17 years old.

At the age of 17, most have just finished sitting their GCSEs and are now going to college or sixth form, yet Lewis-Skelly is not a typical English youngster. His work ethic and determination have allowed him to shine under Wilshere in the youth squads, whilst his involvement in the first team is not far away.

Lewis-Skelly is 1.78 metres tall - or, if you prefer the older method, he is five feet ten inches tall. It allows him to dominate battles in the middle of the park, possessing the strength and power to dictate the tempo of matches. Very few players at his age have that quality.

Nationality

Lewis-Skelly is an English footballer; he was born in Islington, North London - the home of Arsenal.

However, as his grandparents are of mixed Caribbean heritage (Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and St Lucia), Lewis-Skelly is eligible to represent both England and Barbados at international level. During his youth career with Arsenal, he trained with the Barbados national football team, but he has played for several England youth teams.

Having represented England at under-16 level, Lewis-Skelly was called up to the under-17 squad for the 2023 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. In England's second game of the tournament, Lewis-Skelly scored after seven minutes, showcasing his talent in the eventual 4–1 win over the Netherlands. In that particular moment, he dribbled past three defenders in a dazzling run from the halfway line. He lost the ball, but it eventually fell back to him, allowing him to coolly slot it past Dutch goalkeeper Kiyani Zeggen.

On the 6th of September 2023, Lewis-Skelly made his England Under-18 debut during a 2-0 defeat to France in Limoges, whilst on the 2nd of November 2023, Lewis-Skelly was included in the England squad for the 2023 FIFA Under-17 World Cup. The youngster went on to play regularly for England in the tournament, even registering an assist in their 10-0 win against New Caledonia.

However, they were eventually knocked out by Uzbekistan as Lewis-Skelly played the full match. As Lewis-Skelly continues to improve, question marks about his international future will remain. England - just like Arsenal - are impressed by the youngster and will want to tie him down to the English senior football team eventually.

Lewis-Skelly's parents are both British-born.

Whilst most footballers' parents are often not in the limelight as much as their children, Lewis Skelly's mum - Marcia Lewis - is. She has set up an online forum - full of podcasts and advice sessions - to help parents deal with the pressures of seeing their children in academies. The No1 Fan Club offers support and advice to parents, whilst the 'Behind The Boots' podcast runs alongside a support network and specialised app.

The podcast has already had guests like Per Mertesacker, mother of Lioness Georgia Stanway, and Alex Iwobi's dad - Chuka. The pressure of academy football is often too much for children and parents, yet the actions of Lewis-Skelly's mum will help hundreds around the country. She emphasised the importance of her plan earlier this year.

We want to show the landscape before the families get into it. Is an academy right for you? It may be that they decide to leave it for a year. Or you know your rights when you do go in. We’re trying to build a village where you can ask questions, get advice and get answers.

Contract

Lewis-Skelly signed his first professional contract with the club in October 2023. Earlier in 2023, The Athletic, Lewis-Skelly reported that the youngster agreed to extend his contract with Arsenal for a further two years (to 2025) once his existing registration expired at the end of the season. That kept him at the club for the short-term future, before, in October 2023, he signed a new contract with a higher salary. When signing his first contract, Lewis-Skelly said:

It means the world to me, my boyhood club ever since I can remember. To play for Arsenal, I’m truly speechless. It feels amazing. I’m so delighted because, since I was a boy, I’ve been dreaming of this moment. To say that I’m a professional football player now is a dream come true for me and I just want to thank all the staff and all my family that came to support me. For the support around me, I couldn’t be any more grateful.

The terms of his contract are undisclosed because he is under 18, but Arsenal have secured his signature for the foreseeable future - knowing they have one of England's best talents at their club.

Stats

Myles Lewis-Skelly is yet to feature for Arsenal's first team under Arteta; the closest he came to playing was when he featured in the matchday squad against Lens. However, he has thrived in the youth teams, as shown in the table below.

Lewis-Skelly provides a threat from range as a central midfielder. However, he is also versatile, which has led to talk about the youngster potentially being used as an inverted full-back. When Wilshere spoke with The Athletic he said:

I don’t think he’ll be a left-back; he’ll be a midfielder. But if we give him a little bit of everything, it will help. You look at our first team and the way football’s going with players like Oleksandr Zinchenko, the full-back has to be able to play inside.

Everyone at Arsenal admires Lewis-Skelly and his first-team debut is likely just around the corner. With well-rounded qualities - epitomised by his stats - and the work rate and determination to go alongside them, the 17-year-old has everything he needs to become a star in the Premier League. If he stays injury-free, Arteta has another promising talent in his hands at London Colney.