Max Dowman Dazzles on Arsenal Debut Against Brighton

Arsenal fans have already jumped to a conclusion about 15-year-old sensation Max Dowman after he was handed his first start on Wednesday.

Dowman, who is not even allowed to change with the rest of his Arsenal teammates because of his age and FA safeguarding policies, made his Premier League debut in August when he came off the bench against Leeds United.

Dowman entered the fray in the 64th minute to become Arsenal's second youngest ever player and immediately impressed fans in his cameo - winning a penalty in the 5-0 thrashing.

Mikel Arteta elected to give the exciting prospect his first start in the Carabao Cup fourth round against Brighton - making history as the youngest player to start a game for a Premier League side and the first to achieve the feat prior to turning 16.

But despite being fast-tracked into the first-team, Dowman showed his quality in 70 minutes in the 2-0 victory - where fellow academy products Ethan Nwanieri and Bukayo Saka were on target.

Lining up on the right flank and cutting in on his left, Dowman produced a game-high five slaloming dribbles and won the most fouls in the game as he played with a remarkable level of maturity beyond his years.

And while talented youngsters have burst onto the scene before, Arsenal fans are in doubt that they have a special prodigy on their hands in Dowman.

One fan on X said: "Max Dowman is top 10 wingers in world football. And this tweet will be used as a reference for when he wins the Ballon d’Or."

Another simply said" "Max dowman that is all

A third predicted: "Max Dowman will one day become Arsenal best player."

A fourth user boldly claimed: "Max Dowman is better than Lamine Yamal he just doesn't have the media hype."

Arteta waxes lyrical over Dowman with "blind" comment

Though his squad is stacked with world-class players who have helped Arsenal top the table, Arteta has not had any hesitation in giving Dowman his opportunity on the big stage after seeing his performances in training.

"If we looked at his passport every day we would never play him, simple as that," Arteta said.

"But when you look at what he does in training you have to play him - if not, you are blind, or I'm blind.

"So it is finding a balance, an understanding, especially the load, the things that are changing in his life, and make sure he can cope with that. So far he has done that.

"I am calm over it because what we have decided for him for the first few months is happening.

"When we have to give him games, whether it is in the youth cup or with the U23s or with us, he has that. He has a lot of exposure in training with us too.

"We really have to manage his load. He is 15 years old, still growing, a lot of things we have to make sure are under control to make sure he develops in the way he can do."