3 worst Arsenal academy mistakes

Over the past few weeks, Arsenal have let two extremely talented academy stars leave the club on free transfers. Amario Cozier-Duberry and Reuell Walters have joined Brighton and Luton Town respectively after their Gunners contracts expired.

The Gunners could rue this decision if both players go on to have successful careers like others have after leaving the club. There is no doubt Arsenal have seen some outstanding players make the transition from the academy to the first team over the years but they have also let some leave.

There are three that stand out as the worst Arsenal academy mistakes. This list does not take into account players who were once part of the academy but not old enough to make a first-team appearance so players such as Harry Kane will not be featured.

1. Andy Cole

Many fans seem to forget that Andy Cole was a part of Arsenal's academy at the start of his extremely successful career. The striker signed on as a pro in 1989 but made just two senior appearances for the club.

He left the Gunners for Bristol City in 1992 before moving to Newcastle and then Manchester United. Cole had a trophy-laden career with the latter and is the fourth highest goalscorer in Premier League history having netted 187 goals in England's top division.

It is unlikely Cole would have been given chances over the likes of Alan Smith and the incoming Ian Wright at Arsenal but looking at the career he had, there is no doubt letting him leave was an error of judgement by the club.

2. Serge Gnabry

Serge Gnabry was part of Arsenal's academy for just one year before making his first team debut in 2012. He scored one goal in 18 appearances for the club. After a failed loan spell with West Bromwich Albion, he was sold to Werder Bremen in 2016 for £5m.

He joined Bayern Munich a year later and has enjoyed an incredibly successful career with the German giants, winning five Bundesliga titles, a Champions League and a handful of cups. Gnabry returned to North London in 2019, scoring four in a 7-2 victory at Tottenham. He then came back to haunt Arsenal last season when he netted in Bayern's 2-2 first leg draw with Arsenal in the UCL quarter-finals.

Although it was deemed he could not cut it at Arsenal or in the Premier League, fans are now left to wonder what could have been if Serge Gnabry never left the club.

3. Donyell Malen

Arsenal snapped up a 16-year-old Donyell Malen from Ajax in 2015 and he made quite the impact in the academy. He netted 27 goals in 67 appearances at youth level for the Gunners.

Despite his exploits in the academy, Malen was never given a genuine chance to prove himself within the Arsenal first team and was sold to PSV Eindhoven for an undisclosed fee in 2017. He won the Eredivisie in his debut season and scored 55 goals in 116 appearances for the Dutch side.

Malen moved to Borussia Dortmund in for a €30m fee in 2021 and has scored 34 goals in 111 appearances so far. He has also became an established international player having scored nine goals in 36 appearances for the Netherlands, and was also part of the team that made the UEFA Euro 2024 semi-finals.

Malen's departure was certainly a mistake by the club given the lack of chances he was given to make an impact in the first team.

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