‘Better than you’ - Mindset required to succeed in Arsenal’s academy system explained by graduate that worked alongside Thierry Henry & the ‘Invincibles’

The likes of Tony Adams, Liam Brady and Ray Parlour have earned legend status on the back of swapping junior ranks for senior ones, while Bukayo Saka, Max Dowman and Myles Lewis-Skelly tick the local-boys-done-good box at present.

The Gunners have always been eager to leave a clear pathway open, with it important for ready-made superstars picked up in the transfer market to be complemented by those that cost nothing to acquire. That conveyor belt of talent has been impressively productive down the years.

There have been eras where stars of tomorrow found it easier to breakthrough, with doors in the department proving particularly difficult to prise open around the turn of the 21st century. In 2003-04, Arsenal completed an entire Premier League campaign unbeaten.

Halls was a starry-eyed youngster at that time, with the England U20 international facing competition for defensive berths from the likes of Sol Campbell, Ashley Cole, Martin Keown, and Kolo Toure. He did make three League Cup appearances and always had to believe that he was good enough to make the grade.

Discussing that experience with GOAL, Halls - speaking via Casivo, Swedish casino experts - said of working alongside global superstars and what it takes to turn potential into something more tangible: “You know what, it was a weird one. For me, and I think most of the boys, it's not until you leave and you look back. When you're in it, I mean, for starters, Arsenal wouldn't have you in any sort of academy or team if you didn't really, truly, truly believe you were a top, top, top player and you deserve to be there.

“And that was instilled in us from probably 10 years old when I was there - you are the best, you train and you eat the best, you walk like the best and that is because you are the best. So when you eventually get into the first team or you're in and around it, all you do is look around and think, ‘no, I'm better than you, I'm better than you, I should be playing in front of you’. So that's that mindset that they instil into you, otherwise you ain't going to last there.

“So obviously being around, and I was an Arsenal fan anyway, so I kind of, when I came away from training, your mates would be like, ‘oh my God, that's a mate from Arsenal’. Your family and all the rest of it kind of give you that buzz. But in terms of yourself, you're like, ‘no, I deserve to be here and I should be playing in front of him, I should be playing in front of him’. And you're kind of angry most of the time because you might not be playing. So that was a mindset.

“But then obviously when I come away from football later on, I'm like, ‘wow, I was at the Arsenal’ - lucky to be there with the best team, at the best time, but also unlucky to be there with the best, at the best time because I think most of our players would have walked into many of Arsenal's teams except for that one.”

Saka was on target for Arsenal as they opened their Premier League title defence in style with a comfortable 3-0 victory over newly-promoted Coventry at the start of the 2026-27 campaign. Teenage wonderkid Dowman was on the bench, alongside fellow academy graduate Ethan Nwaneri.

The Gunners, with Halls - who is now a male model - watching on from afar, will be back in action on Monday when taking in a trip to Aston Villa. They will be looking for more home-grown stars to make an impact this season, with opportunities to impress set to materialise when challenging for major honours across multiple competitions.