Arsenal teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly sent Mikel Arteta a timely reminder of his undoubted quality with an eye catching performance within the England Under-21s’ 4-1 win over Moldova this evening.
It’s proven a troublesome 12 months for Lewis-Skelly after what was an outstanding breakout season for the 19-year-old in Arsenal’s first-team last term.
But Lewis-Skelly looked well and truly back to his best in England’s UEFA U21 Championship qualifier tonight, showcasing the form of confidence and precocious ability that earned him a primary senior call-up 12 months ago.
Lee Carsley gave Lewis-Skelly the nod at left-back at Carrow Road in an England team also boasting the likes of Jobe Bellingham, Josh Acheampong and Ethan Nwaneri.
Nwaneri stole the limelight with the opener after only 11 minutes in Norwich, nevertheless it was Lewis-Skelly’s exquisite play within the build-up that led to England’s early breakthrough.
The versatile Arsenal full-back – who roamed into midfield for giant parts of tonight’s clash – spun on the turn smartly before dancing around a Moldovan defender and unleashing a shot with the surface of the boot at Artur Nazarciuc’s goal.
Nazarciuc managed to get a firm glove to Lewis-Skelly’s strike, however the rebound fell directly into the trail of Nwaneri, who cooly slotted home to the goalkeeper’s left.
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Just 14 minutes later, Lewis-Skelly added one other moment to his impressive highlights reel, beating two Moldovans in some style before finding Nwaneri again with an audacious flicked pass.
Nwaneri let himself down together with his finish on this occasion and the Arsenal forward – who’s currently on loan at Marseille – was duly punished for his wastefulness as Moldova equalised through Vasile Luchita in the beginning of the second half.
The hosts restored their lead on the hour-mark, though, as Archie Gray found the corner with a well-taken effort from the sting of the box, before Nwaneri added his second of the night – assisted by, you guessed it, Lewis-Skelly – within the 73rd minute.
Second-half substitute Romain Esse increased England’s advantage within the closing stages and Carsley’s men held firm to tighten their grip on top spot in Group D of qualifying.
Lewis-Skelly has made only one start across Arsenal’s entire Premier League campaign having began 15 times across his extraordinary debut season with the Gunners last term.
In recent days, he has even been linked with a move to Manchester United as a possible escape route out of Arsenal.
As clips of Lewis-Skelly’s outstanding performance for the England U21s began doing the rounds on social media this evening, a number of Arsenal fans began calling for Arteta to unshackle the teenager.
‘FREE MYLES LEWIS-SKELLY MAN,’ one Gooner wrote on X.
One other said: ‘Lewis-Skelly has been horribly under utilised this season, hope the rumours of him potentially leaving in the summertime are nonsense! Top player.’
‘Arsenal fans don’t understand what we now have in Lewis-Skelly,’ a 3rd wrote.
‘So so good from Lewis-Skelly within the construct up. Give him more minutes!’ said one other supporter in response to Nwaneri’s Eleventh-minute goal.
Asked about Lewis-Skelly’s reduced involvement prior to Arsenal’s Champions League last-16 tie with Bayer Leverkusen, Arteta said: ‘Every season is different.
‘He had excellent moments on this season. He had other moments when he hasn’t played in that much.
‘Obviously, just a few days ago, within the FA Cup, he was suspended and he couldn’t play. So, there are numerous reasons. Sometimes, as well, the nice type of your teammates.
‘There’s plenty of aspects that contribute to that. But he’s doing well.’
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