Noel Whelan believes Arsenal’s decision not to bolster their squad in the January transfer window has opened the door for more youngsters at the club to break into the team.
Mikel Arteta’s side has been looking to break back inside the top four, and they spent some weeks there in the first half of the season.
Whether they end the campaign with Champions League football would depend on how they perform in this second half.
If they had signed some new players, it probably would have made it easier to achieve a top-four finish.
However, former Leeds United man, Whelan believes the decision not to bring in reinforcements is an opportunity for Arteta to blood more youngsters before the end of this season.
He tells Football Insider: “They’ve got a world-class youth set-up. We’ve seen some of the players come through and burst onto the scene in recent years.
“Arteta is putting his stamp on this side. He’s laying down a marker and he’s standing strongly by his stance. I love this about Arteta.
“There’s a real pathway between now and the end of the season for these young players to come through and really make a name for themselves.”
Just Arsenal Opinion
Grooming youngsters is one thing we have a reputation for and several other exciting players are coming through at the club right now.
Hopefully, most of our experienced first-teamers will remain fit and firing for the rest of the season.
However, if we suffer an injury crisis, that could present an opportunity for one of the budding players at the club’s academy to make a name for himself.