ETHAN NWANERI has made an encouraging start to his loan spell at Marseille.
Hopefully, the Arsenal teenager has made the right call despite an incredible number of other clubs in Europe’s top divisions desperate to sign him for the rest of the season.
Nwaneri made a goal-scoring Ligue 1 debut in the 3-1 win over Lens on Saturday and Gunners defender William Saliba should maybe take a bit of credit for the move.
Saliba was farmed out on loan to Marseille by Gunners boss Mikel Arteta for the 2021-2022 season and he persuaded Nwaneri, 18, during a number of chats, that going to the Stade Velodrome was the right decision.
Equally, Saliba, who had already been on loan at Nice and former club St Etienne, did not have the same amount of interest in him as Nwaneri.
SunSport can today reveal that SIX Premier League clubs tried to sign Nwaneri this month.
And to prove his growing reputation was not confined to this country, there were also three teams in Italy and another trio in Germany who wanted Nwaneri.
Two of the Italian clubs and one of the German sides wanted a loan deal with an option to buy which Arsenal refused immediately.
Arteta has repeatedly insisted that Nwaneri’s future is at the Emirates and this loan spell is just a chance for him to get some games under his belt as he had been struggling this term to feature.
In July, German giants Dortmund were interested in capturing Nwaneri before he signed a new five-year deal keeping him at Arsenal until 2030.
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Playing for Marseille will come with its own pressures so this will be a good experience for the youngster.
SKIPPING THE QUEUE
ARSENAL fans wishing to skip the 25-year waiting list for a season ticket can do so – but it will cost them £25,000.
A number of season ticket debentures have gone on sale through Asset Match, with access to seats being offered to fans for between £17,000 and £25,000.
The deal is a long-term debt instrument used to raise funds by the club.
Fans pay the hefty sum to get the right to then buy a season ticket and give up their seat when they want to cash in their investment.
The club first issued A and B debentures in 1993 to fund the redevelopment of Highbury, before they later issued C and D debentures to help pay for their 2006 move to Emirates Stadium.
Although expensive, the unusual investment option gives supporters the chance to jump the queue for a season ticket, with the waiting list currently in excess of 100,000 people.
HOW MACH?
ARSENAL have scouted Brazilian wonderkid Iago Machado as they continue to search the globe for the world’s best young talent.
Machado, 16, is a centre-back for Corinthians and has impressed for their youth team.
Arsenal are understood to have watched the defender at this month’s Sao Paulo Youth Cup.
The Gunners were not alone in doing so and Ajax are also scouting the teenager.
Machado cannot move to Europe until he is 18 next year and there is expected to be a fight for his signature.
The youngster is currently focused on breaking into the Corinthians first team and making his senior debut.
He has trained with the first team on occasion and has done well.
KAIRAT’S BREAK
KAIRAT ALMATY turned their away day into a holiday with an extended stay in London.
The Kazakh side will spend a total of six days in the capital, arriving last week and staying until Friday.
Teams usually land the day before a game and will head back the morning afterwards, but Kairat gave themselves plenty of time to recover from their 3,504 mile trip over to the UK.
Kairat’s league campaign ended in October, so the minnows have only been playing Champions League football since then.
In fact, their 3-2 defeat last night was actually their last game of the season, with the Kazakhstan Premier Premier Liga not starting again until the spring.
TWICE IS NICE
MIKEL ARTETA always leaves no stone unturned – especially after a defeat.
The Arsenal boss is famed for his tactical analysis and spends plenty of time watching back match footage.
That was especially the case after Sunday’s shock defeat to Manchester United at the Emirates.
Arteta watched the game back in full twice as he sought to work out where his side went wrong.
The Spaniard also revealed how he held a clear-the-air meeting with his squad on the day after the game.
Arteta wants his players to “enjoy” the rest of the season as they continue to fight for trophies on four fronts.
FER THE BEST
ARSENAL youngster Seb Ferdinand is ready to go on loan to get minutes.
Ferdinand, 20, has come through Arsenal’s academy after joining them when he was 13 years old.
The winger is yet to make his debut for the first team, however, and is ready to go on loan if needed.
Ferdinand said this week: “My goal for the rest of the season is to contribute with goals and assists whenever I play.
“I also want to get experience of men’s football, which is super important for my development and also my career.
“That’s the level I want to be at so I need to have that experience, whether it’s with the first team at Arsenal or on loan somewhere.”
Ferdinand comes from a family with a rich footballing history.
His cousin, Dean Sinclair, played for Charlton and Norwich – while he is also distantly related to Anton and Rio Ferdinand.
He said: “We’re connected somewhere down the line.”
NEITHER THIS NOR THAT
CHRISTIAN NORGAARD has finally told Arsenal fans how to pronounce his name.
The Danish midfielder caused mass confusion when he used an unusual pronunciation of his name during pre-season media duties.
A viral clip of Norgaard pronouncing his surname “Nar-goo” instead of “Nor-gard” had fans wondering if they had been saying it wrong this whole time.
Thankfully Norgaard, 31, cleared everything up during his press conference on Tuesday.
The former Brentford midfielder told reporters: “I have two ways, the English way and the Danish way.
“‘Nor-gard’ is the English and then ‘Nar-goo’ would be the Danish.”
