Charles Sagoe Jr exclusive: Arsenal youngster talks 'joke' Bukayo Saka, Mikel Arteta's 'high' standards and what his own future holds

Sagoe Jr joined Arsenal as a 12-year-old having spent a couple of seasons in Fulham’s academy. From then he’s worked his way up through Hale End to the first-team picture and is now on his second professional contract at the club, which has 18 months left to run.

There have been ups and downs for the talented young attacker during the past two seasons. In 2023, he was part of Arsenal’s summer tour to the United States where he featured in a game against Bournemouth in Los Angeles, and it wasn’t too long after that he was handed his senior debut by Arteta in a 1-0 win over Brentford in the Carabao Cup.

"That memory will always live by me," he recalled. "As a little boy, I’d always grown up watching Arsenal, so having the opportunity to put on that shirt and step out with the likes of Emile [Smith Rowe] and Martin Odegaard was an absolute pleasure. I’m forever grateful for the manager putting trust in me and having faith to start me in that game. And we were lucky enough to win. It's a memory that will always stick by me."

Sagoe Jr looked well set at that point to really kick on with his career and went on to make his Championship and League One debuts during two loan spells, first at Swansea City at the back end of the 2023-24 season and then at Shrewsbury Town during the first half of the following campaign. However, neither produced as much game time as he had hoped for.

He has subsequently used this season to reset with the Under-21s at Arsenal and has caught the eye with his performances, registering five goals and five assists in 12 appearances in all competitions and - having also earned himself a Premier League 2 Player of the Month nomination for August - he is now hungry for further first-team football and feels as though he has a point to prove.

"I've had a very enjoyable campaign, affecting games with goals and assists and trying to help the team win as many games as possible," he said. "In this day and age, wingers are judged on goals and assists. As much as it's positive, beating my man, inevitably, it's about end product behind that skill. So, obviously, when I'm getting goals and assists, it means I'm doing my job for the team and if that's helping us win games, that's a positive for me to take on board."

Sagoe Jr added: "I'm one of the older ones this year. It's a different type of role that I'm having to face, obviously mentoring some of the younger ones and passing my advice on board and I've really enjoyed that role. It's a different character within me. Normally, I'm one of the quiet ones. So it's a new type of role which I'm really taking on board and I'm enjoying."

At the age of 21, Sagoe Jr is approaching a crossroads in his young career. He still has 18 months left on his contract at Arsenal and, for now, his focus is on building on a positive first half of the season with the U21s. But with the January transfer window now open, there is a chance that another loan move could present itself which would give him the opportunity to test himself and further develop within senior football.

"I’m obviously going to speak to people to see what the best thing is for me,” he said. “I’ve had loan experiences out at Swansea and Shrewsbury and they're learning curves, really. It's a challenging environment going outside your comfort zone when you've been at Arsenal for such a long time in your career. Going somewhere else is always challenging to adapt to the playing style that the team might be playing. But once you hit the ground running and you start getting appearances under your name, you're just going to build confidence. 

"It's a really good opportunity going out on loan to men's environments where every game matters. But [for now] I’m just going to keep my head down in training and keep working hard and applying myself."

Sagoe Jr’s performances this season for Arsenal have not gone unnoticed, with Liberia calling up the winger for the October international break. He qualifies for Liberia through his mother, but could also represent Ghana through his father’s side of the family and so - while being appreciative of Liberia’s offer - he has for now opted to keep his options open when it comes to international football.

"I’m always blessed to see recognition from the countries that I'm from,” he said. “Liberia is from my mum's side. I'm forever grateful that they've supported me and it seems that what I'm doing is really standing out to them. 

"So, I'm grateful to have that opportunity on the cards and I'm just going to keep on ticking away wherever I'm playing. I’m just going to try and perform to the highest level that I can perform at and hopefully more things come from that."

Although Sagoe Jr has spent the season with the U21s at Arsenal, he has enjoyed plenty of time around the first-team set-up. He regularly gets called across to train with the senior side and was part of the matchday squad for the Champions League tie against Slavia Prague in November.

That has allowed him to have a close-up view of the work that has gone into Arsenal’s trophy bid this season, which still sees them firmly in the hunt for all four major competitions and currently sitting pretty at the top of both the Premier League and Champions League standings.

So what exactly is it like at Arsenal right now? "The standards are at a ridiculous level," Sagoe Jr replied. "It’s just such an enjoyable opportunity to be in and around that mix and learn off brilliant players that have to execute and perform to the highest level and capacity every weekend.

"No one's slacking. All of them are amazing technically and physically. It's so competitive when you go over there so you have to bring your A-game. He [Arteta] demands a lot of high standards. He really wants to execute the minute detail. It's such a good environment to be around just to keep on pushing yourself whenever you get that chance to go over there."