Arsenal: The meticulous Eddie Nketiah process wonderful to see

As a story in The Athletic outlines, Arsenal were meticulous in their preparations to send Eddie Nketiah out on loan. Such attention to detail is wonderful to see.

The loan system is a process that the well-run big clubs exploit for their advantage. For all of the derision the Chelsea loan army attracts, they should be praised for assembling such a wide range of talent, many of which will either return to the team as contributors, as Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham are currently, or be sold for a decent profit.

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Arsenal, however, have largely wasted the opportunity to hand their young players first-team opportunities. They have tried, like every big club. But their decision-making has predominantly been ill-advised, sending players to teams where they only sit on the bench, something that they may as well do at the Emirates.

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This summer, the Gunners had several loan decisions to make regarding their young players. They kept Reiss Nelson and Joe Willock. Emile Smith Rowe is still with the team but could leave in the European window. And most significantly, 20-year-old centre-forward Eddie Nketiah was sent out on loan to Leeds United for the season, Unai Emery concerned by the number of minutes he could give the young prospect with Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang already leading the line.

On Wednesday, a fantastic piece by Phil Hay of The Athletic detailed the process that was undertaken by the Gunners and the potential signing clubs. With several different teams keenly interested in attempting to sign Nketiah on loan, the Gunners conducted an almost pedantic process in which they asked the Bristol City, Leeds United, who they eventually chose, and Fortuna Dusseldorf to present to them with how they would use Nketiah and aid his development.

Arsenal deemed Leeds the best landing spot for Nketiah, impressed with their willingness to start him on a regular basis after Kemar Roofe’s exit and the opportunity to work under Marco Bielsa, who is a well-regarded coach and developer of young players.

Whether that is the right decision or not remains to be seen. Hindsight, as always, will provide the answer. But the fact that this detailed process is now being implemented at the club, which is viewed as a new venture not just in north London but in world football, this being an extension of the ‘transition team’ that was assembled earlier in the summer, is extremely encouraging.

Arsenal have struggled to make the most of the loan market in previous seasons. But if they commit to it, with smart analysis, led by Ben Knapper, and decision-making, it will greatly aid the progression of a swathe of young, burgeoning talents at the club, Nketiah chief among them.

Being meticulous in deciding where to loan these young talents is vital. If Arsenal want to make the most of their academy talent, they must master the loan market. How they handled the Nketiah decision suggests that they can do precisely that.