Arsenal: 3 major benefits of Emile Smith Rowe England call-up

There couldn’t be anyone more deserving of being involved. Having missed out on the initial squad named by Gareth Southgate for the remaining two World Cup qualifiers of the group, Emile Smith Rowe was later drafted in to take Arsenal representation in the camp up to three.

Bukayo Saka has made himself a Three Lions regular. Even if he’s not clocking up the goals and assists numbers that most would like to see him achieve this season, he has cemented his place in a youthful side.

In goal there are strong calls for Aaron Ramsdale to not only be handed his first senior appearances for England but to also dislodge Jordan Pickford as the new number one heading into the World Cup, such has been his magnificent form.

As for Smith Rowe, while his involvement came about as a result of four other members of the squad pulling out for various reasons, he was somewhat unfortunate to miss out in the first place.

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3 major benefits of Emile Smith Rowe’s England call-up as Arsenal academy stars joins Bukayo Saka and Aaron Ramsdale in the squad

Since September no English forward has clocked up more goal contributions than his six, and his winning goal against Watford was his third in his last three Premier League outings. His tally of four in 11 top-flight outings is already double that he managed in 20 appearances last campaign.

His form has been hard to ignore. Even with the wealth of attacking options Gareth Southgate has to choose from, the like that got England to their first major final since 1966 over the summer, competition for places is fierce. Yet on his current form and trajectory, this involvement is set to be more frequent.

A wonderful achievement for him, his rise up to this point has been quite remarkable. Just 12 months prior he had only one Premier League appearance to his name. He also didn’t cost £73m, but that’s point scoring and we won’t go there…will we? Too late.

There is so much to be joyous about as Arsenal supporters and the whole situation brings nothing but positive notes. Here are three of them.

1. Emile Smith Rowe Needs the Self Belief

Upon the completion of Mesut Ozil’s Arsenal contract and the resulting availability of the No. 10, many expected that to be reserved for the heavily touted new creative midfield addition. In the background was talk over a new contract for Smith Rowe, and the Hale Ender’s desire to assume that number spoke volumes of his confidence.

With it comes huge responsibility, but he never shied away from it.

Yet, Mikel Arteta said back in mid-October that Smith Rowe has to believe in himself even more. Confidence is key as a player and despite the ever improving performances he’s putting in, the mental side of his game needs work.

"“Emile is naturally like this (humble),” Arteta said. “If anything, sometimes you have to tell him how good he is. “He needs to believe how good he is. You have to encourage him to try [things] he’s capable of doing. He’s a joy to work with. It’s still very early in his career but we’re really happy to have him in the team.”"

What better boost of confidence can you have than being called up to the squad that reached the final of the 2020 European Championships? If what Arsenal supporters are seeing is a Smith Rowe not yet fully on board with the concept of him being an excellent footballer, then this can only help.

Admitting he felt nervous coming into St George’s Park to meet his teammates, these experiences will help him realise that he is deserving of being in this tier of player. There is still a long way to go, of course, but the boost it will give him and drive him on to even bigger and better things.

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2. New Ideas & Practices With England

In his short career Smith Rowe has already played under a host of different managers. He’s featured under various England youth coaches, Arsenal youth coaches, Ralf Rangnick, Danny Cowley, Unai Emery, Freddie Ljungberg, Mikel Arteta, and now Gareth Southgate.

That’s quite the list for a player who only recently turned 21 years old.

Now fully invested in the systems and tactics of the Arsenal boss, new ideas and even just a different voice can be beneficial to him. Southgate isn’t known as a tactical genius – especially in-game where he lacks assertiveness and can fail to see obvious patterns – but he is a fantastic man manager who has been praised from all corners for his approach to individuals.

Having been the peripheral youngster at Arsenal, Smith Rowe is now one of the talismen in the squad. So much goes through him and equally as much relies on him having a strong game.

At England he will revert to being a little fish in a big pond, as it were, and that grounding may be precisely what he needs as he now starts to learn how to balance club and international life.

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3. Emile Smith Rowe Will Barely Play This International Break

Of course, the selfish ‘it’s all about Arsenal’ side has to reemerge at some stage. It can’t stay hidden away forever, despite the overwhelming response being from Smith Rowe’s call-up one of jubilation and pride for the academy star.

But all those worried about any additional minutes he’s set to play can rest assured, as he is going to play fewer minutes with the senior team than he would have done with the Under-21 side.

Lee Carsley’s side are in UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualifying action against Czech Republic on Thursday, a huge clash in their group with the Czechs having won all four of their fixtures so far while the Three Lions have two wins and a draw from their three outings.

Smith Rowe would have started and finished that match, without doubt, and then in the following friendly meeting with Georgia there is little reason to suggest he wouldn’t have played again.

As for the senior team, they need four points from their remaining two matches to secure top spot in their group ahead of Poland, starting off with Albania at Wembley. Overwhelming favourites to do so, Southgate’s side then finish up with an away trip to San Marino, a match they are heavy favourites to win, and win comfortably.

Even with very winnable matches remaining, Southgate won’t take any risks and Smith Rowe’s best chance of involvement will be in that final match against San Marino. Even if he is handed a start in that one, the level of opposition will make the game feel more like a training match than anything else. Thus, in terms of minutes, the 21-year-old is due for more rest than he would have got under Carsley.

With the dreaded winter schedule to come, it’s an additional bonus to Arsenal.