Arsenal winger makes early loan return but first-team role unlikely despite injury crisis | OneFootball

20-year-old academy graduate is now back at the Emirates Stadium, but probably not for long

Arsenal winger Charles Sagoe Jr has returned to the club after his loan spell at Shrewsbury Town was cut short.

The move has been cut short by Shrewsbury, though, and Sagoe Jr has now returned to Arsenal.

The 20-year-old made 18 appearances for Shrewsbury while on loan with the club, but only half of those games were starts.

Sagoe Jr was signed on loan in the summer when Paul Hurst was manager, but he was sacked in November.

Hurst was replaced by Gareth Ainsworth and Sagoe Jr has only made three appearances since then.

In a statement on Monday morning, Shrewsbury said: “Shrewsbury Town can confirm Charles Sagoe Jr has returned to parent club Arsenal.

“The 20-year-old made 18 appearances for Town after joining the club on a temporary basis from the Gunners back in August.

“Shrewsbury would like to thank Charles for all his hard work over the past five months. We wish him and his family the very best of luck for the future.”

Sagoe Jr is a product of Arsenal’s academy and signed a new contract in the summer before going out on loan.

The winger joined Arsenal in 2015 from Fulham and signed his first professional deal seven years later.

Sagoe Jr was a regular for Arsenal’s academy teams last season, scoring three goals and registering 10 assists in 16 appearances.

He also made his senior debut by starting in Arsenal’s 1-0 win in the Carabao Cup at Brentford in September 2023.

Sagoe Jr spent the second half of last season on loan at Championship club Swansea after making the bench for Arsenal in both the Champions League and Premier League.

Arsenal are light on forward options at the moment as Bukayo Saka and Raheem Sterling are both injured, while Ethan Nwaneri was forced off at the weekend during their 1-1 draw at Brighton.

They will be wary about playing Sagoe Jr, though, as if he turns out for Arsenal then the 20-year-old will be unable to join another club on loan this season. FIFA rules state that players can only represent a maximum of two clubs during the course of a single campaign.