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Mikel Arteta was full of praise for 15-year-old star Max Dowman after he became the youngest player to feature in the Champions League on Tuesday evening.
Dowman came on for Jurrien Timber in the 72nd minute in Arsenal's 3-0 win over Slavia Praha - a win that took them to second position in the Champions League table,
Dowman did not have a goal or an assist, but looked really good. He was calm and composed, which is not normal for a 15 year old player in the Champions League, and yet, it seemed like just another day for the Englishman.
Arteta, after the game, was full of praise for the youngster, talking about his maturity, personality and the fact that it does not matter how old or young a player is, as long as they are good.
Max Dowman received praise from Mikel Arteta after Arsenal's 3-0 win over Slavia Praha
He said: "That's personality, that's courage and that you cannot teach that.
"You have it or you don't, and it doesn't matter what his passport says. You throw him in this context and he's ready to adapt and have a good performance.”
Speaking about whether Arteta knew about the statistic before sending Dowman in, the manager said: "Yeah, I didn’t know that, I just found out.
"But it’s no surprise. What I really liked is the way he played. He came on, started to take the ball, spread the opponent and won free-kicks.
"I am delighted to have him. Obviously, we’re super happy to see him make his debut, Andre as well, and the players that we changed to play and keep the performance.”
There is one important word that Arteta used: adapt. Seeing a young player who is more than capable of playing in the position he excells at for many teams in the league, but also being able to adjust and adapt to whatever the manager requires goes a long way.
Dowman, as talented as he is, has a lot to learn. There are a lot of things that need refinement, but what he is doing at his age is not normal.
In fact, it is anything but normal. And if you add adaptibility, courage and personality at this age already, you are looking at a world-beater who does not shy away from the occasion.
Dowman needs to focus on his football now, and try to become the youngest player to ever start a Champions League game.
Depending on how good the next few games in the competition are for the team, it could well happen this season, in one of the final league phase games. It remains to be seen whether that record is broken this season or the next.