The 15-year-old made his non-competitive debut against AC Milan, and also featured Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Villarreal before taking a break at the end of the summer.
He appears to be a job joining Mikel Arteta’s first team for the 2025/26 season, with Peter Crouch making a brave comparison with one of the game’s most iconic players.
“Breakout star? I love what Arsenal did with the young guys coming out there,” Crouch explained in TNT Sports ‘The Breakdown.
“Max Douman is the guy who was on everyone’s lips. He certainly looks like a preseason. He knows he’ll be a player.
“I’ve seen him a bit, and he plays like that — obviously this is a ridiculous statement — but the way he plays it seems like (Lionel) Messi.
“Literally, you go inside and easily pass the players. Obviously, he’s not there yet, but he has everything that has all the attributes.
“(Ethan) Nuwaneri, Miles Lewis Skelly, I think he’s an older politician now, but I think the players coming to Arsenal for me are something to see.”
The teenager, born in 2009, played for Arsenal U18 last season – three years older than his age group – scoring 17 goals in 22 league matches and registering 10 assists.
And fellow TNT sports expert Owen Hargreaves claimed he would “play like an 18 year old.”
Douman also plays beyond his age group at the international level and was featured at the English Under-17 at the European Championships earlier this summer.
He started all three group stage matches, scored and won 4-2 in the Czech Republic.
Dowman is reportedly taking a break after joining with the Gunners before the season, so he is not expected to be with the Arsenal squad for the next few weeks.
“He’s definitely continuing to be impressed,” Arteta said of his talented outlook. The impact he has had on the game, the efficiency he shows with every attack and action, is incredible.
“Again, he deserves a chance. If he continues like this, let’s see what happens.”
He added:
“So, in the three or four games he’s played, he manages to shock him and has big moments in the game.”
