Arsenal's latest wonderkid! Mikel Arteta promises 15-year-old a first-team spot next season as Gunners look to replicate Bukayo Saka and Myles Lewis-Skelly success

Downman has been training with the senior Arsenal squad for months now and was also part of the travelling roster for the club's mid-season break in Dubai. The midfielder, who turns 16 in December, was not eligible to play for the senior team in the 2024-25 campaign, but he is now all set to be part of the main squad next year and will travel to Asia for the club's pre-season tour - as per The Mirror.

Arteta has heaped praise on the Gunners' U-15 star, who is already drawing comparisons with team-mate and club captain Martin Odegaard. To date, Ethan Nwaneri is the youngest Premier League debutant in history as he first appeared for the north London side against Brentford in September 2022, aged 15 years and 181 days.

Speaking to reporters, Arteta said: "He trains with us a lot. I think he is on the right pathway, and everybody in the academy has done an incredible job to consistently protect him, inspire him, challenge him, keep him always up and the levels that he could produce, and he is doing well. He is doing the right steps and taking it slowly. He will dictate how fast we go."

Arteta's men will play their final game of the season on May 25 as they take on relegated Southampton away from home, having already secured a place in next season's Champions League.