Mikel Arteta welcomes “incredible” Arsenal teenagers in “painful, rustic” preseason defeat to Villarreal at the Emirates

The 15-year-old scored yet another penalty, and did the same in a 3-2 victory at Newcastle on July 27th.

“He’s definitely continuing to be impressed,” Arteta said of his talented outlook.

“The impact he has had on the game again today, the efficiency he shows with every attack and action, that is incredible.

“Again, he deserves a chance. If he continues like this, let’s see what happens.”

Arteta compared Douman’s quick improvements to Ethan Nuwaneri’s first team potential against that, saying he has already developed a relationship with players much older than him.

“The most similar was Ethan (nwaneri),” Arteta said when asked who he could compare to Douman’s early breakthrough. “I think it was a different stage there (with Nuwaneri), but it was very fast at Max.

“Even when he was training with us last year, he was doing this kind of thing in training, and now he’s consistently doing it in the game. So in the three or four games he’s played, he manages to influence him and has big moments in the game.

“I think the response is very clear. They have the ball and they give it to him, so it tells me how much they trust him and the relationships he’s building within the team.

“So I don’t think there’s anything better than that. The confidence they show to make things happen and the constant connection they have with him.”

They have one game left against the athletic club before they begin their Premier League season against Manchester United on Sunday, August 17th.

When asked if he plans to play more games in-house, Arteta replied: “No, Saturday’s game is the last game, and that week is just a preparation for that week.”

He added: “So, with so many things, I’m very happy. I think the outcome hurts today. I think they were very efficient, but we were naive.

“Today we weren’t really good in that department.

This was also the first start to sign summer signature Viktor Gyoker. He showed some flashes to be the ultimate 63-minute frustrating 63 minutes on the field.

The forward couldn’t find a target, but it was clear that the Arsenal player was trying to get him in and find him as much as he could.

“We had already broken that line because it was very important for him to start the game and start to have feelings and connections with his team,” Arteta said.

“He was only together for about a week, but I’ve already seen a lot of things and a lot of purpose, especially how he was attacking in a certain space. So, in general, for a lot of players who haven’t played a lot of minutes, we have a lot of things because they’re better prepared for Saturday.

“I think he feels really good when he’s training every day. I think he’s building connections outside too, which I think is really important for players who help him get in positions that need to get in.

“I think he’s finished six or five sessions to this day because his fitness level, I don’t think he’s really trained with the team for two months. So on Saturday, I think he’ll take another step and he’ll be in better shape.”