Reiss Nelson has named the four stars of Arsenal’s FA Youth Cup campaign he expects to succeed, ahead of competition’s final rounds.

Arsenal are currently in the semi-finals of the cup, facing two legs against Blackpool Youth. They play in Blackpool on Tuesday March 20th at 19:00, followed by the return leg at the Emirates Stadium on Monday April 16th, also at 19:00.

Nelson told the Arsenal website that there’s a good feeling around the club academy right now.

“It’s a really exciting time for all youth teams at the moment,” he said. “We’re near the top of the table in the Premier League 2 and we’re into the latter rounds of the FA Youth Cup. I think everyone’s just buzzing in the youth section of the training ground at the moment.”

As someone who still spends half his time with the youth teams, Nelson gets a better look than most at the next rising stars at Arsenal.

Here are the four players he thinks we should watch out for:

1Trae Coyle

Trae Coyle
  • Age: 17
  • Position: Attacking midfield

Coyle made a lot of progress this season after a tough start. The 17-year-old spent the early part of the campaign out with injury, and didn’t immediately hit his stride after recovering.

Since then though, he’s really pushed on. He got an assist on his u23 debut in December, and Arsenal named him in their updated Premier League squad in January.

As well as that, he is consistently performing well for the u18s. Although he’s get to grab a goal or assist in the cup, he has six goal contributions in seven league games so far. Even when he isn’t scoring or assisting, he still adds a lot to the young side’s play.

Hopefully he can get on the score sheet in the FA Youth Cup semi-final.

Nelson’s opinion

“We’ve got so many talented youngsters in our ranks, but the ones who have really stood out to me are Trae Coyle at No 10 and Xavier on the wing, who has also made a couple of under-23 appearances.”

2017/18 stats

  • Premier League 2 (u23s): 2 appearances, 1 assist.
  • U18 Premier League: 7 appearances, 5 goals, 1 assist.
  • FA Youth Cup: 4 appearances.
  • Overall: 13 appearances, 5 goals, 2 assists.
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