The Arsenal u21s drew 1-1 with Wolves on Monday, extending their unbeaten run, and coach Steve Gatting believes this can only be a good thing.
Despite going a goal up in the 16th minute thanks to Donyell Malen, the Young Guns couldn’t hold on and Wolves equalised two minutes later via Tommy Rowe.
The Arsenal u21s are currently second in division two of the u21 Premier League and are yet to be beaten this season. Therefore, although they dropped two points against Wolves, they still haven’t lost and, as Gatting says, this is fantastic for their confidence.
“It is good for the confidence,” Gatting said to Arsenal Player.
“It keeps the boys going and keeps us in touch with the top of the league.
“We have got a Youth Cup game on Friday and now the games come think and fast and we will need to rotate the squad. We have to because our squad is so small.
“We tried to take the boys off who will feature on Friday but there were one or two boys who played 90 minutes and will start on Friday. “
He continued, “I thought it was a real tough game against a very, very experienced side,”
“It was a right test for the boys and they came through with a lot of character. It was difficult.
“A lot of their players have played in the Football League. We were playing against a team that were more experienced and perhaps more powerful than us. It was a learning curve for us.
“We found it difficult to pass the ball like we normally do because of the pace of the game. They were more powerful than us and stronger. I think the boys came out with a lot of credit.”
It’s always good to see our Young Guns doing well since, in theory, they’re the future of our senior squad. Although we may not see all of them in the future, it’s exciting to keep an eye on them and imagine who could be playing where the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are now.