Arsenal’s head of academy and former centre-half Per Mertesacker has explained why some of the side’s most successful transfers of the past are now impossible to replicate. While the Gunners’ historical fan scrutiny of spending may be something of the past, it is instead the impacts of Brexit that the German explains have truly changed things, and not for the better.
The Gunners have seen some of the biggest recruitment drives in recent seasons, culminating in Mikel Arteta rising to the top of the league on occasion and falling just short of the major titles. In that time, several stars have risen from the academy.
However, some of the stars of old who joined the youth side in their mid-to-late teens and broke into the first team early on are no longer something we expect to see of the same ilk anymore. Mertesacker explained how the move that saw Cesc Fabregas, among three other high-profile players join the club in their teenage years, is now impossible.
“Through Brexit, we can’t bring over European talent when they are 16 anymore – it’s now 18. So we’re looking at our own players more, and the pathways we can create,” he told the club’s website.
“We go back to looking at the pre-academy and laying the foundation there, but also while adding in a couple of new players along the way. We also believe in the longevity of our pathway, and most of the Academy products who are now with the first team all started right back in the first intake at under-9s in Hale End.
“You look at Bukayo, Myles, Ethan, plus Max Dowman and Andre Harriman-Annous, they all started in the foundation phase with us. That shows the consistency of the work we’re doing.
“But that doesn’t mean we don’t recruit domestically as well at other age groups when we get the opportunities and we feel we have that need. But getting players like Hector Bellerin, Cesc Fabregas, Emiliano Martinez – we cannot do that anymore.
“I think that’s a shame too, because domestic players could benefit from being exposed to this European style as well, but the rules have changed. We have to live with that.”
There are however some options available in order to secure foreign talent before players turn 18 and Mertesacker alongside new sporting director Andrea Berta and the broader recruitment team have done exactly that.
Arsenal recently announced that an agreement had been reached to sign Ecuadorian twins Edwin and Holger Quintero from Ecuadorian side Independiente del Valle. Currently 16, they will join the club when they turn 18 in 2027.
And just over a month prior, the club also announced that talented Shamrock Rovers forward Victor Ozhianvuna had agreed to join the club when he turns 18 in January of 2027. So, while the likes of Fabregas these days might have needed to wait a little longer, Arsenal are working hard to overcome these new modern market challenges.
