Mikel Arteta has praised Jaden Dixon’s start to life with Arsenal, following the player’s winter transfer to north London from Stoke City.
Ahead of Arsenal’s FA Cup match away to Mansfield Town on Saturday, a lot of the talk was about Max Dowman and Marli Salmon, both making their first starts in the competition for the Gunners.
But Dowman had previously started for Mikel Arteta’s side in the League Cup, and Salmon had made appearances in the FA Cup as a substitute against Portsmouth and Wigan.
The one player making their true Arsenal first-team debut was Jaden Dixon, introduced as a substitute just over a month after signing for the club.
Dixon began his Arsenal spell by breaking into the u21 team, but Arteta revealed on Saturday that the 18-year-old has been involved with the senior side more often in recent weeks.
“He’s been doing really well,” Arteta said. “He’s been training with us lately, and with the absences that we had in the backline, he was an option [against Mansfield Town], and he was ready to perform.”
Playing 14 minutes against Mansfield, Dixon helped to see Arsenal over the line for a 2-1 win. The young defender was playing at right-back, but he’s also capable of operating as a centre-back.
Dixon had made senior appearances in the past for Stoke City, completing four 90-minute matches for the team in the League Cup last season.
The teenager also made a couple of substitute appearances in the Championship, and he was named on the bench for five of the six games in all competitions immediately prior to his departure.
In response to his first senior opportunity with Arsenal, Dixon posted on Instagram to say simply: “Glory to God. Arsenal debut!”