Can Nwaneri be be Martin Odegaard’s successor?

Arsenal’s captain is a 24-year-old midfield maestro at the peak of his powers. But quietly emerging behind him is a teenager who has already made history and has the club wondering if a new heir to the creative throne is on the rise.

The journey of Ethan Nwaneri from local schoolboy to Premier League record-breaker has been nothing short of remarkable. Born in North London, he joined Arsenal’s academy at age 8 and was playing for the under-18s by 14​. His prodigious talent saw him fast-tracked into first-team training, and on 18 September 2022, at just 15 years and 181 days old, Nwaneri made his Premier League debut as a late substitute against Brentford – becoming the youngest player ever to appear in the English top flight. In doing so, he shattered a record previously held by Harvey Elliott and even broke Arsenal’s all-competition age record that had stood since Cesc Fàbregas’s debut at 16. Manager Mikel Arteta admitted a “gut feeling” drove the decision to blood the youngster amid an injury crisis that day​, and the move symbolized Arsenal’s renewed faith in youth.

In the months after that historic debut, Nwaneri returned to hone his craft with Arsenal’s youth sides and England age-group teams. He remained firmly on the club’s radar – and on that of others. Despite significant interest from top clubs, the lifelong Arsenal fan committed his future to the Gunners in 2023 by signing scholarship terms and agreeing to a professional deal upon turning 17. It was a statement that Arsenal’s latest academy prodigy wasn’t about to be lured away. Those behind-the-scenes strides soon translated into on-pitch impact. Nwaneri began the 2024/25 campaign in blistering form for Arsenal’s junior teams and earned more first-team chances. He netted his first senior goals with a brace in the League Cup, and by November 2024 the attacking midfielder had scored his maiden Premier League goal, coming off the bench to seal a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

Arsenal fans already serenade him as “one of our own,” and the club’s coaching staff have been careful to “put brick by brick” around Nwaneri’s development.

The Case for Nwaneri as Ødegaard’s Heir

It is easy to see why many at Arsenal are beginning to view Nwaneri as a potential successor to Martin Ødegaard. In training and in flashes on the pitch, the teenager has essentially become the Arsenal captain’s understudy. Like Ødegaard, Nwaneri is a left-footed attacking midfielder who excels in tight spaces and thrives between the lines. The parallels between the two are striking: Ødegaard himself was a wunderkind who broke into a senior squad as a 16-year-old, and he has taken the young Nwaneri under his wing. “I have been trying to help him in many different ways,” Ødegaard said of mentoring the 17-year-old, drawing on his own experience as a teenage star moving to Real Madrid. For a youngster suddenly training among adults, Ødegaard’s guidance is invaluable in learning “what it feels to be a young player in a senior squad” and coping with the spotlight​. 

Tactically, Nwaneri possesses the tools to one day fill Ødegaard’s role at the heart of Arsenal’s midfield. Coaches have labeled him a player who can operate as a classic “number 10,” while also being capable of every attacking position across the front line​. He is equally comfortable drifting in from wide areas or playing behind the striker, and he shows an “innate capacity to receive and dribble with the ball at his feet” even under pressure​.  In his fleeting first-team cameos, Nwaneri has already displayed a maturity and fearlessness on the ball that mirror Ødegaard’s influence. One memorable example came in a January match at Brighton: deputising on the right wing for Bukayo Saka, Nwaneri cut inside and lashed home a goal with his left foot, a move described as “Saka-esque” in its confidence.

Technically, Nwaneri’s balance, acceleration and ability to find pockets of space have drawn effusive praise. At 5-foot-9 he isn’t the tallest, but he uses his body smartly, and his calmness on the ball at speed already stands out. These attributes – vision, close control, agility – are hallmarks of Ødegaard’s game as well. Perhaps most importantly, Nwaneri has a keen eye for goal that Ødegaard developed over time. In youth matches he’s played as a false nine and shown a “tremendous ability to put the ball in the back of the net,” according to Arteta​. If he can translate that scoring instinct to senior level, it adds another dimension to his candidacy as Ødegaard’s eventual replacement in Arsenal’s attack.

There remain, of course, significant hurdles before Nwaneri can truly challenge Ødegaard’s throne. The Norwegian is Arsenal’s linchpin, and his influence goes beyond what statistics show. During Ødegaard’s six-week injury layoff in late 2024, Arsenal’s play noticeably suffered: they lacked the captain’s ability to link midfield and attack, unlock stubborn defenses with a final pass, and orchestrate the team’s tempo while remaining press-resistant. These are subtleties that Ødegaard has mastered and that a teenager cannot replicate overnight. While some fans clamored for Nwaneri to fill the void during that period, Arteta was cautious. Despite the youngster’s brilliant cameos, “the Arsenal technical bench wasn’t prepared to fully ‘unleash’ him” as Ødegaard’s stand-in just yet​.

Nwaneri is on the right path, but still in the finishing school. Ødegaard himself is only 26 next season and entering his prime years; he remains very much the present for Arsenal. The challenge for Nwaneri is to soak up everything he can from the incumbent and continue evolving his decision-making and consistency to Ødegaard’s elite level. The fact that Arsenal even entertains the discussion of a 18-year-old “replacing” their captain someday is a testament to Nwaneri’s potential – but also a reminder to temper expectations in the short term.

Mikel Arteta’s handling of Nwaneri so far reveals a manager meticulously crafting a future star without rushing him. Arsenal have been here before with other Hale End graduates like Cesc Fàbregas, Jack Wilshere or Bukayo Saka – prodigious talents integrated at young ages – and Arteta is determined to manage Nwaneri’s development just as carefully. Since that debut at 15, the teenager’s first-team exposure has been gradual and deliberate. Arteta has largely limited Nwaneri’s starts to cup competitions, bringing him on in Premier League and Champions League games only in the late stages and usually in Ødegaard’s right-sided midfield slot, so that the youngster learns the very position he may inherit.

From a squad-building perspective, Arsenal’s investment in Nwaneri is part of a broader vision for sustained success. Tying down the youngster on a long-term deal was a priority in 2023, and the club’s determination to fend off suitors like Manchester City and Chelsea was telling. Arsenal see Nwaneri – along with other academy gems such as Myles Lewis-Skelly – as foundational pieces of the next generation. “The agreement with Nwaneri highlights the continuation of Arteta’s exciting project in North London,” one analysis noted when the 16-year-old committed his future. In other words, keeping him in red and white was as important as any big-name signing. The current Arsenal squad is youthful and ambitious, built around under-25 stars like Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Ødegaard and William Saliba. Nwaneri is being groomed to join that core. It’s not inconceivable that in a few years, Arsenal’s attack could feature Nwaneri regularly supplying and scoring goals much as Ødegaard does now. In fact, the prospect of Saka, Ødegaard and Nwaneri linking up to lead a silky Arsenal side over the next decade isn’t fantasy – it “isn’t something Gunners fans need to dream about. It’s reality,” as one outlet boldly declared after Nwaneri’s breakout performances. Arsenal’s long-term planning imagines the teenager and the captain playing together in the coming seasons – and eventually, when Ødegaard is older or if his journey takes him elsewhere, Nwaneri seamlessly stepping into the void. By integrating him early, Arsenal are effectively future-proofing their midfield creativity. There is a blueprint in place for Nwaneri to become the club’s central playmaker in the post-Ødegaard era, whenever that arrives. If all goes to plan, the transition could be almost organic: one day, perhaps not too far off, the Emirates crowd might see a No. 10 on the pitch orchestrating play and realize the guard has changed – the kid who was once a curiosity at 15 is now the main man at 20.

For now, Martin Ødegaard remains Arsenal’s undisputed heartbeat – the captain around whom the team “flows in a different way” when he plays, as Arteta put it. Ethan Nwaneri, still just 18, has a long way to go to reach that level of influence. But the very fact that Arsenal can envision one of their own academy boys eventually filling Ødegaard’s boots speaks volumes about Nwaneri’s talent and mentality. He is learning from the master, gaining confidence with each cameo and goal, and slowly convincing even the skeptics that he could be the next great emirates playmaker. If Nwaneri continues on his current trajectory – developing his game, keeping humble, and seizing the moments he’s given – then one day in the not-too-distant future, the question may not be if he can replace Ødegaard, but rather whether anyone even remembers a time when they doubted he would. The torch isn’t changing hands just yet, but it’s gleaming brightly in waiting.