Arsenal: Last year may have been exactly what Reiss Nelson needed

Arsenal have a fresh wave of youngsters looking to make a dent on the first team, and Reiss Nelson is among them. For one big reason.

Arsenal’s wave of youth talent is centered on several young names, all of whom play different and versatile roles and all of whom look to be ready to take that next step, unlike previous “waves” of youth talent.

Reiss Nelson was arguably the guy that kick-started this new wave. Last summer, he burst onto the scene and showed himself to be a mover and a shaker. He was a razzle-dazzle extraordinaire with a penchant for fancy flicks, dips and tricks.

That never translated into the regular season. He didn’t take the first team by storm and it was a quiet inaugural year for the young Englishman.

Nobody panicked though. He was only a teenager. Maybe we were a bit bummed, because the excitement was so rampant, but expectations of this sort are a different breed.

Coming into this season, I think that we are seeing a Nelson that found tremendous benefit in last year’s lessons. We, the fans, weren’t the only ones that were enchanted by Nelson’s play. It’s likely that he, too, was bursting with confidence.

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When it all came to a grinding halt, surely he was a bit needing of guidance, which he then found in a dose of realism. The fairy tale year we dreamed he might have never materialized, but what happened instead was that he was given a taste of what life was going to be like.

Nelson is back at it this preseason. He is showcasing his talents as he has done so many times before. It’s hard not to when you have as much talent as he does.

But his showcasing is looking less smash-and-grabby and more controlled and mature. As if one year in searching spotlight was enough to ground him in the reality of what’s required in the top tier of English football.

Nelson may have a fantastic opportunity to make something of himself this year, assuming no other transfers are made. He is only 18, and he has something very few other players on this team have – that combination of speed and dynamism.

He was back at it against Lazio, beyond just the rebounded goal. There is something special in this young man, and I can’t help but think that him getting slapped by reality last season played a big part in his maturation process.