January 18, (THEWILL) – Arsenal Football Club is ramping up its preparations for its highly-anticipated Premier League match against Manchester United with a training session held at London Colney on Wednesday.
Manager Mikel Arteta has promoted academy player, Joel Ideho, to the first-team training squad. Ideho, a former Ajax Amsterdam wonderkid, was recently invited to attend a Nigeria U20 training camp in preparation for the 2023 Africa U20 Cup of Nations but has yet to show up.
The young winger has also been spotted training with Arsenal first-team forwards, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and Eddie Nketiah before their Emirates FA Cup third-round fixture with Oxford United, but was ultimately not included in the travelling party to Oxfordshire.
The 2003-born player has not played for Arsenal’s development squad this year, missing back-to-back Premier League matches against Manchester City and Leicester City. Despite playing for Netherlands youth teams in the past, Ideho is eligible to suit up for the Nigerian national team’s U20 team, the Flying Eagles, without submitting a request for a change of association.
Ideho is now eligible to be included on Arsenal’s Europa League roster having spent more than two years at the Emirates Stadium following his move from Ajax in October 2020. Fans are eagerly awaiting the potential debut of the young talent in the upcoming match against Manchester United.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
