Arteta hails 'massive' potential of record-breaker Dowman

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hailed Max Dowman's "unteachable" talent after the England youth international became the youngest player ever to feature in a Champions League game at 15 years and 308 days.

Dowman came on in the 72nd minute of the 3-0 win against Slavia Prague on Tuesday, replacing Leandro Trossard in midfield.

"The first ball he gets, he takes people on. He starts to dribble and gets a foul. That is personality, that is courage," said Arteta.

"You cannot teach that. You either have it or you don’t. It doesn’t matter what his passport says, you throw him in this context and he is able to adapt and have a good performance.

"We have a massive player there."

Dowman was already the youngest Arsenal player to start a match, doing so in the League Cup against Brighton & Hove Albion six days earlier.

He made his first-team debut in July and Premier League debut in August, the second youngest in the league's history after clubmate Ethan Nwaneri.

Nwaneri, who also played in Prague on Tuesday, was 15 years and 181 days old when he made his top-flight debut with Arsenal in 2022.

In the Champions League, Dowman took the record previously set by Youssoufa Moukoko at 16 years and 18 days with Borussia Dortmund in 2020.

Mikel Merino, who scored two second-half goals before Dowman came on, was also full of praise for a player who has been on Arsenal's books since 2015.

"Every time he steps on the grass he's just an amazing player to watch. You see him with a flair, with energy and with confidence in his game. It is lovely to see him perform," said the Spaniard.