Arsenal: Wellington Silva Decision Time Fast Approaching

It’s incredibly rare that a player gets to the age of 23 at a major club like Arsenal without a concrete decision being made on his future.

Wellington Silva doesn’t do ordinary. The Arsenal winger always manages to stand out from the crowd with his excellent dribbling and superb skills.

The Brazilian’s association with Arsenal stretches all the way back to late 2008, when he made a stellar impact while on trial from Fluminense.

From there he agreed terms to a £3.5m deal in 2010 before being sent out on no fewer than six loan spells – due to the fact that the FA backtracked on their initial decision to award Silva a ‘Special Talent Visa’. He only obtained the necessary work permit to play for Arsenal in April 2015 after earning a Spanish passport, allowing him to finally play for Arsenal from the start of the 2015–16 Premier League season.

Here’s where Wellington has been on loan the past six seasons: (Appearances/Goals)

2011	→ Levante (loan)	2	(0)
2011–2012	→ Alcoyano (loan)	16	(3)
2012–2013	→ Ponferradina (loan)	20	(3)
2013–2014	→ Murcia (loan)	38	(3)
2014–2015	→ Almería (loan)	31	(0)
2015–2016	→ Bolton Wanderers (loan)	22	(2)

Last season on loan at Championship side Bolton Wanderers, Wellington provided some tantalising glimpses of his potential. But was often injured and unable to perform consistently and command a regular place in the starting line-up. It tells a similar story to his other loan spells.

He will return to London Colney for pre-season training yet again this season, but this time his future with club should become a lot clearer.

(Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images) /

There could still be an opening for him at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal are in need of an additional wide player and it isn’t out of the question that Wellington could leapfrog Alex Iwobi and Serge Gnabry in the quest for first-team minutes.

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Especially considering the amount of pre-season action he could see with major attacking players still resting after respective international duties. Plus the uncertain futures of Theo Walcott, Joel Campbell and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain only causes the situation to be further shrouded in mystery.

Alternatively, Arsene Wenger may assess the situation and come to the conclusion that Wellington isn’t a player worth persisting with, particularly given the strides that Iwobi made this past season and the fact that Arsenal have so many creative players.

Deciding Wellington’s fate won’t be easy, but for the sake of both the club and the player, some clarity on the situation is required. It would be intriguing to see how the prospect – if he can still be referred to as such – fares in the Premier League, but we are now edging closer to a decision.

He might have lots of tricks, but Wellington Silva needs to show more to make it into the starting line-up of any side. At 23 years of age, he needs to be playing regular football. That’s not something that Arsenal can guarantee with so many attacking players vying for game time.

Next: Arsenal: Time To Get Jazzed Up For Neven Subotic

It’s been eight years. Is Wellington Silva worthy of another chance? Or does the fact that he hasn’t made any sort of impression mean it’s time for Arsenal to move on?

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