Ethan Nwaneri is set to sign his first professional contract with Arsenal, and he’s already held conversations over another deal.

Arsenal midfielder Ethan Nwaneri is set to sign his first professional contract with the club once he returns from England u17 duty, according to a report from Isaan Khan of the Daily Mail.

With Nwaneri turning 17 last week, he’s now eligible for professional terms, and Khan suggests the new deal will be between two and three years.

That’s normal for a first professional contract, with the length of a first pro deal capped.

For Nwaneri, he would be unable to sign a deal going beyond 2026 at this time, and so that’s presumably what he’s agreed for the time being.

It’s only once you turn 18 that you can sign a longer-term contract, but the good news is that Khan adds that informal discussions have already taken place over an improved deal on Nwaneri’s 18th birthday.

Ideally, Nwaneri would sign a five-year deal after he turns 18 next year, which would take him all the way to 2030. But with almost 12 months until then, we’ll have to see how things develop.

The situation is similar to Chido Obi-Martin’s, who agreed a scholarship deal with Arsenal a long time ago, but won’t actually sign it until this summer due to his age. That’s often how it works at youth level.

Chelsea and Manchester City pushed hard to sign Nwaneri last year, but David Ornstein then broke the news that the midfielder had agreed scholarship terms and a professional deal with Arsenal.

It was just a matter of waiting to be old enough to sign it.

Nwaneri has since scored 14 goals in 14 games for the Arsenal academy, as well as making one further appearance for the senior side.