Arsenal staff believe 17-year-old talent Myles Lewis-Skelly could become an inverted left-back in the future, according to a report.

The Standard report that whilst Myles Lewis-Skelly is primarily a midfielder for the Arsenal youth teams, senior coaching staff believe he could follow in Oleksandr Zinchenko’s footsteps by becoming an inverted left-back.

The report adds that Lewis-Skelly currently feels he is best in midfield, either playing as a No.6 or a No.8, but perhaps his future could end up being elsewhere.

Most of Lewis-Skelly’s appearances this season have come in midfield, but he did play at left-back against West Bromwich Albion u21s in late February.

Only turning 17 earlier this season, Lewis-Skelly is still primarily an academy player.

The youngster has made 16 appearances this campaign, 10 of them for the Arsenal u21s, three for the u19s in the UEFA Youth League, and three for the u18s (two of which were in the FA Youth Cup).

Dropping down to the u19s to play in the Youth League, or to the u18s to play in the Youth Cup, is not unusual. Even players in the first-team squad have occasionally dropped back down for those competitions.

The only league appearance Lewis-Skelly has made below u21 level was last week against the Crystal Palace u18s, when the u21 fixture was cancelled and he found himself available as a result.

Arsenal staff clearly think Lewis-Skelly’s level is in the u21s, despite his young age, and he’s even sat on the bench for a couple of first-team games this season.

The club will be patient with him, and perhaps a loan or two might be the best next step, but there’s evidently a long-term plan in place at Arsenal for himself and fellow England u17 Ethan Nwaneri.