Arsenal have built a solid foundation on youth products from their academy but will let one of their most promising youth stars this summer
(Image credit: BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)
Arsenal are set to lose one of their most promising young stars this summer permanently.
Manager Mikel Arteta has built his side on youth products from the club's Hale End academy, integrating the likes of Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe into his side before adding Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson. Folarin Balogun is currently on loan, while Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Joe Willock have been prominent squad players in recent years.
But with Arsenal doing so well this season, it would seem as the Gunners have actually outgrown some of their younger prospects – and now perhaps their most exciting starlet is set to leave the club.
Arsenal have built their side on youth this season (Image credit: Getty Images)
According to the Athletic'sDavid Ornstein, Charlie Patino is set to depart this summer in search of first-team football. The midfielder wants a permanent transfer, too, instead of another loan.
Patino broke into the first team last season for cup games against Sunderland and Nottingham Forest, scoring in the former before heading on loan to Blackpool this season. The Tangerines were relegated at the weekend from the Championship but the teenagers has been a bright spark in their fight.
Despite the promise that Patino has shown, however, he isn't likely to be integrated into the first team set-up any time soon. The Gunners are reportedly looking for another midfielder or two, with Champions League football returning to the Emirates Stadium next season for the first time in seven campaigns.
"Amicable talks have taken place with Arsenal, who are ready to help facilitate a switch amid growing interest from the UK and abroad," Ornstein writes.
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Charlie Patino is leaving Arsenal (Image credit: Getty)
Eligible for England and Spain, Patino was included at No.13 in FFT's list of the 50 most exciting teenagers to watch this year.
The 19-year-old is valued at €8 million by Transfermarkt.
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Arsenal are already being linked with a host of big names ahead of a summer back in the Champions League.
Mark White is the Digital Content Editor at FourFourTwo. During his time on the brand, Mark has written three cover features on Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard and the Invincibles, and has written pieces on subjects ranging from Sir Bobby Robson’s time at Barcelona to the career of Robinho. An encyclopedia of football trivia and collector of shirts, he first joined the team back in 2020 as a staff writer.
