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Five years ago, Arsenal handed new long-term contracts to five British players. Kieran Gibbs, Carl Jenkinson, Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain were identified as the club's future "British core" - a stable of home-grown players who embodied the club's identity.
In an era where top clubs have cosmopolitan squads, fans were excited at the prospect of more local players representing their club.
At the time, the five players Arsenal signed up were first-team regulars with their primes ahead of them.
The plan was a failure. Of the five, only Ramsey and Jenkinson remain at the club. The former is set to leave when his contract expires in the summer, while the latter is in career limbo after an injury-laden loan at Birmingham last season.
The "core" produced three FA Cups, but individual success was limited. Gibbs would lose his first-team place and depart for West Brom, Oxlade-Chamberlain couldn't hold down a regular starting spot and jumped to Liverpool, and injuries continued to trouble Wilshere until he was released last summer.
Mention the words "British core" to any Gooner now and they'll roll their eyes at you. However, time marches on, and a new generation of talent has since emerged.
The fans were introduced to this new crop during last season's cup competitions. The lower standard of opposition in the Europa League and Carabao Cup provided the club a good opportunity to hand debuts to several of its youth players.
A handful of those players have been identified by the club as potential cornerstones for the future and have been handed new long-term contracts.
Here, you'll find just four of Arsenal's next generation of English talent, and why they could be featuring in red-and-white for many years to come.
Emile Smith Rowe
Affectionately known as the “mini De Bruyne” at Arsenal, Smith Rowe made waves on the club’s pre-season tour by scoring a wonderful goal against Atletico Madrid. The 17-year-old introduced himself to the fans after he managed to beat one defender and then rifle the ball into the top corner from 20 yards.
To those already familiar with him, that strike was no surprise. Smith Rowe had been in outstanding form for the club’s youth sides and raised eyebrows when, while playing for the under-18s, he scored an outrageous curling effort from an unlikely angle. New manager Unai Emery was informed of his talents and immediately put him in his pre-season tour squad, where he featured in every game.
The midfielder possesses the attractive quality of being able to carry the ball through midfield, weaving in and out of players with clever touches and superb balance. He’s impressed Emery so much that he handed him his first team debut in the Europa League against Vorskla. He then started him in a cup game against Brentford and another Europa League match against Qarabag. It was during the latter that Smith Rowe scored his first goal.
Once courted by Barcelona, and a part of England’s U17 World Cup winning squad, Smith Rowe is a part of an exciting new breed of English talent. It won’t be long until he’s featuring regularly for Arsenal.
Reiss Nelson
The Bundesliga is turning into a significant proving ground for English teenagers. While Borussia Dortmund’s Jadon Sancho is stealing the headlines for his superb displays, his fellow winger Nelson has also made an excellent start to life at Hoffenheim.
Many believed Nelson was first-team ready at Arsenal. The 18-year-old featured in every one of Arsenal’s Europa League group stage matches last season and performed admirably in the unfamiliar role of right wing-back. Appearances in the Carabao Cup and the Premier League followed, leading many to assume he was already part of the first team squad.
A loan was surprising, but few could be upset at his choice of destination. Hoffenheim, coached by the talented Julian Naglesmann, was the perfect place for him to develop. A year in the Bundesliga, plus a handful of Champions League games, would be a terrific experience for him.
Able to play on the right or left, Nelson has plenty of pace and trickery. He already has two goals to his name in Germany, plus another goal on his debut for the England U21 side. He's expected to return to Arsenal ready to compete for a first-team place.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles
The story goes that when Unai Emery interviewed for the Arsenal job, he impressed the club’s hierarchy by explaining, in keen detail, how he would improve their young players. The example he was said to have used was Maitland-Niles.
Maitland-Niles enjoyed a breakthrough season last year, thanks primarily to his versatility. Normally a central midfield player, he was filling in as a right back for the youth teams until an injury crisis at left back saw him drafted in as a left wing-back for Arsenal’s cup games. With no sign of the club’s mounting injuries abating, he was forced to fill in there in the Premier League.
Despite the unfamiliarity of the position, Maitland-Niles still managed to display his qualities. His extreme pace allowed him to compensate for any positional errors, while his remarkable composure, that at times bordered on apathy, ensured he was never flustered with the ball.
A fractured leg has unfortunately kept him out of the season so far, but he’s still very highly regarded. His versatility already makes him a valuable part of the squad, while many see the potential for him to become a great box-to-box player in the future.
Eddie Nketiah
“Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!” was what the Emirates Stadium chanted when Nketiah, sent on in the final five minutes to rescue a Carabao Cup tie against Norwich, scored twice. It took him 15 seconds to level the score, before popping up again to head in a corner in extra-time. Few teenagers had enjoyed such an explosive start to their senior career.
Nketiah had been prolific in Arsenal’s youth teams, though technically isn’t a product of their academy. The striker was originally a part of Chelsea’s youth set-up but wasn’t offered professional terms as he was deemed too small. He was offered a trial at Arsenal, impressed the watching coaches and was duly offered a contract. Many now hope he can be the home-grown number nine that has proven so elusive.
Nketiah combines raw pace with a poacher’s instinct. He has an aggressive approach to being a striker, preferring to turn and run at defenders as soon as he’s able and always playing on the shoulder. What he lacks in height he makes up for in guts.
Regular first-team action has been hard to come by at Arsenal, thanks in no small part to the quality of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette. However, he is a frequent part of the club’s cup squads and in the thinking of the coaches.
