Brandon Ormonde-Ottewill believes he made the right decision to move to Helmond Sport in the Netherlands.

The 21-year-old left back came through Arsenal’s academy and recently made the decision to try his luck abroad. Although he signed professional terms with Arsenal in 2012, he didn’t make a single first-team appearance for the club and was released in 2015.

He then spent two years at Swindon Town, making 56 appearances, before moving to Helmond Sport in the Jupiler League – the Dutch second division. It’s a move that he’s described as the “best decision he could have made”.

“The reason why I came here is because it’s very technical,” he told Planet Football. “One of my friends, Dan Crowley, who is at Willem II, he was talking to me about it, and I’ve played against Dutch sides so I know how the football is and how they’ve been brought up to play. I came over here as I see this as a good opportunity to show what I can do.”

Ormonde-Ottewill has made just a single appearance for Helmond Sport so far due to an ankle injury he picked up early in the season. They’ve made a poor start to the campaign, winning just once in 10 games. They sit 18th in the table.

The 21-year-old has followed in the footsteps of other young English players who have recently moved abroad. Dan Crowley, a highly promising attacking-midfielder in Arsenal’s academy, made the switch to Willem II in the Eredivisie in the summer.

Two more Arsenal academy players, Kaylen Hinds and Chris Willock, also moved, joining Wolfsburg and Benfica respectively.