Arsenal: Loan absolutely perfect for ambitious Reiss Nelson

Reiss Nelson is reportedly set to sign on loan with Hoffenheim. It would be the perfect move for the hugely ambitious Arsenal midfielder who is simply looking for regular playing time.

Reiss Nelson is a uniquely confident, self-assured and ambitious young man. Last season, at just 17 and 18 years old, he was demanding that he be more heavily featured in the starting XI. Arsene Wenger, eventually, satisfied Nelson’s wishes, but only in the Premier League matches that had no bearing on the season — by that point, Arsenal had solely shifted their focus to the Europa League.

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Nelson was not happy. He stalled on a new contract extension because of that. He wanted assurances of more playing time. He believes, rightly or wrongly, that he is deserving of more playing time. And he is willing to ask for it and even move away to find it.

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This week, it was initially reported that Nelson was set to leave Arsenal and sign for Hoffenheim. Since the first breaking of the news, it has been clarified that it would be a loan departure with a contract extension attached. But the intention of Nelson was made to clear. He wants to play.

Although the move hasn’t been officially completed, when asked about Hoffenheim’s interest in Nelson, Julian Nagelsmann admitted that the club is working hard to complete it before Friday’s deadline:

"“The transfer is not through yet, but we are very interested. I can confirm that. We are trying to make it happen. We have to solve a last few details. He is not very experienced, a very young guy, but I love to develop players. He is a player of another club that I try to develop. He has something special about him that we don’t have in our team at the moment. He has a lot of pace, is very good in one-on-one-situations and he can help us to get behind the defensive line.”"

It is clear that a season on-loan under a coach like Nagelsmann would be absolutely perfect for Nelson.

Serge Gnabry, another former Arsenal youngster who chose to move away to find game time elsewhere, returned to Bayern Munich, from whom he was on loan, and Nagelsmann conceded that his team does need a direct, pacy winger like Nelson. That means that, while he may not start immediately or without question throughout the season, there are opportunities there for Nelson to fight for.

Nagelsmann also has a keen interest in developing players of skill and rare ability. That is precisely who Nelon is, a uniquely gifted young footballer with all of the natural talent in the world to mould and fine tune. This seems, then, like the ideal landing spot for an individual of Nelson’s ability and ambition.

cLet’s hope that he is afforded the game time that he believes he is warranted and that he desires. And with it, let’s hope that he returns to Arsenal a better player than when he left. The future is bright for Nelson, and this is all a part of the process of ensuring that it is as bright as possible.