Arsenal and Yacine Adli: Competition proves preservation of philosophy

Arsenal have signed 17-year-old Yacine Adli to a three-year deal. Winning the competition for his services proves preservation of the youth philosophy that was instilled under Arsene Wenger. Unai Emery and Sven Mislintat sold development and won.

Throughout Arsene Wenger’s 22 years at Arsenal, there was always a keen and sustained interest in the scouting and acquiring of young players from across the continent. Rarely would a transfer window go by in which the club hadn’t signed a player in and around the age range of 16-18 from another European club, hoping to develop them into a regular first-team contributor.

Catch the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal podcast right here

Sometimes the moves worked wonderfully — Hector Bellerin, Cesc Fabregas, Aaron Ramsey; sometimes less so — Yaya Sanogo, Denilson, Carlos Vela. But because the players were often free, or at least very cheap, and the wages were also fairly small, the risk was negligible and the reward was substantial. Throw mud at the wall and hope that it sticks. That was very much the motto.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 3 observations from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park
• 3 standout players from 1-0 victory over Everton
• 3 positives & negatives from Goodison Park victory
• Arsenal vs PSV preview: Prediction, team news & lineups
• 3 talking points from Arsenal’s victory at Goodison Park

And it seems that even after Wenger’s departure, the same philosophy is set to carry on. On Wednesday afternoon, it was confirmed by a wide-range of reports in the media that Arsenal are to sign Paris Saint-Germain midfield prospect Yacine Adli. The 17-year-old is a highly-touted individual who was named as PSG Young Prospect of the Year last season, a season in which he was given his first-team debut by now Arsenal manager Unai Emery.

That is significant. While at 17 years of age it is difficult to accurately assess a player’s genuine skill-level and forecast his future, it is believed that there was interest from across Europe in Adli’s signature, including from PSG themselves who are said to be disappointed at failing to keep their own talent in-house.

In the end, Arsenal won the competition for Adli because Emery, and Head of Recruitment Sven Mislintat, convinced the Frenchman that north London would be the best place for his development. It is the same sales pitch that Wenger used to make. It is why Ramsey famously rejected Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United, believing that Wenger would be better for his career.

The fact that Emery and Mislintat were able to win the race to Adli shows their commitment to developing young players, and the belief of Adli, at the very least, that they will be successful in such development — said to be a very determined and ambitious individual, there is no way that Adli would have agreed to the switch if he did not feel that it was the best move for his career.

Next: Arsenal: Top 3 midfield solutions

That is great news. The Gunners, implemented in the modern era by Wenger, have a tradition and foundational philosophy of acquiring and growing the best young talent in Europe. It would be a shame to lose that. Winning the competition for Adli is a sign that the philosophy will be preserved.