Arsenal: Yes, Emile Smith Rowe special, but patience a necessity

In two preseason friendlies against Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, Emile Smith Rowe has proved that he’s special. Nevertheless, patience is necessary with the Arsenal midfielder.

The headlines may have been made in the first of Arsenal’s two International Champions Cup fixtures in Singapore played this week, but I was more impressed by what happened in the second.

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

Emile Smith Rowe notched his first goal against Atletico Madrid with a superlative strike from the edge of the area, slaloming his way past a foray of challenges before curling the ball into the far corner, but the poise, artistry and creative guile that he showed against Paris Saint-Germain two days later were equally as imploring to me.

More from Pain in the Arsenal

• 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
• Mikel Arteta provides Gabriel Martinelli injury update after Everton win

For Smith Rowe, it has been a whirlwind week. Just his second and third appearances for the Arsenal first team, his first goal for said first team, and also his 18th birthday, all coming in the far reaches of Southeast Asia. This is certainly a coming of age for arguably the most talented academy graduate since Jack Wilshere almost a decade ago.

Smith Rowe certainly is a special player. The intelligence, awareness and quality on the ball that he displayed in both appearances, but especially the latter, in which he was introduced with game splintering at the seems and he simply slotted himself between the cracks of a creaking PSG to prise them open further and pour salt into them, are rare attributes that few players at his age possess.

And to produce on such a stage. Admittedly, PSG’s team was predominantly teenagers with Thomas Tuchel missing a large contingent of his squad due to extended post-Word Cup breaks afforded to many of his more established players. But there was the still the baying crowds, the shining lights, the audience at home, and the unique chance to impress a new manager all providing plenty of reason for Smith Rowe to melt in the sweltering heat.

But two promising displays in two preseason friendlies means very little in the quickly evolving, rarely considerate modern world of football. Smith Rowe has by no means ‘made it’. He still has a lot of work to do, to prove that he can support the first team, to forge a role for himself in Emery’s plans, and to eventually establish himself as a regular starting player. That is a three or four-year process.

Patience, then, is a necessity. There will be ups. There will be downs. There will be periods of great fruit. There will be periods of great frustration. His development will quicken and slow, his qualities will expand and depreciate, his hopes will rise and his hopes will be dashed. But in it all, his talent will remain.

Emery, Arsenal, Smith Rowe, his coaches, agent, family, friends and fans must all be patient, therefore, as they wait for his time in the limelight. With the right work ethic and a little luck, it will come. But let’s not champion him as the future of Arsenal football club just yet. There is still a long way to go.