Meet Nigerian-born Nwaneri, youngest player in Premier League history

Arsenal beat Brentford 3-0 to return to the top of the Premier League table on Sunday. In the win, Mikel Arteta introduced a youngster, Ethan Nwaneri, who broke the record as the youngest player in the history of the Premier League. Scandal rocks Sokoto multi-million naira constituency road projects Unplanned pregnancies: Community sensitised on sexual, […]

Meet Nigerian-born Nwaneri, youngest player in Premier League history

Ethan Nwaneri in action for Arsenal against Brentford on Sunday

Arsenal beat Brentford 3-0 to return to the top of the Premier League table on Sunday.

In the win, Mikel Arteta introduced a youngster, Ethan Nwaneri, who broke the record as the youngest player in the history of the Premier League.

With injuries to captain Martin Odegaard and summer-signing Oleksandr Zinchenko, the Spaniard took the opportunity to include Nwaneri on the bench.

Below are a few things you probably don’t know about the youngster:

  • Nathan was born in March 2007 to Nigerian parents.

 

  • His full name is Ethan Chidiebere Nwaneri.

 

  • He is aged 15 years and 181 days when he was introduced in Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Brentford on Sunday.

 

  • He beat the record held by Liverpool midfielder Harvey Elliott who was 16 years and 30 days old when he played for Fulham in 2019.

 

  • Nwaneri plays as an attacking midfielder for Arsenal.

 

  • He joined up with Arsenal at nine years old. By the age of 14, he was already playing for their under-18 side.

 

  • Nwaneri started the 2022–23 season playing for Arsenal under-18s but such was his form that he was progressed up to the Arsenal under-21s.

 

  • He joined the Arsenal first team for training in September and made his first Arsenal Premier League match day squad on 18 September for the match against Brentford, and was then included among the match day substitutes for Arsenal.

 

  • Nwaneri has been described as a “number 10” who plays with flair but can also dribble well, and is versatile enough to play wide as well as central.

 

  • Nwaneri currently represents the England U-16s and has also made one cap with the U-17s but is eligible for Nigeria through his parents.