Cheltenham Town have signed James Olayinka from Arsenal in a permanent deal.

James Olayinka celebrates his goal with the Arsenal u21s (Photo via Arsenal Academy on Twitter)
James Olayinka celebrates his goal with the Arsenal u21s (Photo via Arsenal Academy on Twitter)

Cheltenham Town and Arsenal have confirmed the permanent transfer of 21-year-old midfielder, James Olayinka.

Olayinka came through Arsenal’s academy, joining the club at the age of seven but never made a senior appearance for the first team.

Olayinka has been fantastic for the u21s this season, and he really deserved a senior move before the window closed. It even looked like Arsenal might have been protecting him for a transfer, as they substituted him early on Friday night.

The midfielder had already racked up two assists in the match against Brighton, which put him top of the Premier League 2 assists charts with five. He also has two goals, putting him on seven goal contributions from four games.

Now, however, he will be playing his football for Cheltenham Town after signing a two-year deal with the League One side.