Arthur Okonkwo was promoted to be Arsenal third-choice goalkeeper for the senior side this season, and there is further cause for celebration for his family after news that his younger brother is also set to be offered a professional deal with the club.
16 year-old Brian has been playing with the academy this season, and has been called up to feature for the Under-18 side this term, featuring in a cup match thus far, but was given a spot on the bench for a league match at the weekend also.
His progress has not gone unnoticed with reports claiming that he is now set to be offered a scholarship deal for the 2022-23 season.
Highly-rated attacking midfielder Ethan Nwaneri starts for Arsenal. Arthur Okonkwo's younger brother Brian, who has been offered a scholarship for 2022-23, is on the bench. https://t.co/pJdP7tSyxA
— AllNigeriaSoccer (@Editor_ANS) February 26, 2022
The Okonkwos could be the next set of brothers to enjoy careers in football, with the Donnarummas and Mandandas before him, but it isn’t an overly regular occurrence for members of the same family to take up the same role in the team. The dynamic of the playground would be that the worst player would play in goal, and with both brothers likely to practice together you would imagine that one would have more experience of playing outfield than the other, not that the role we play as a kid is the one that better suits us in the long run.
It will be interesting to see if both can challenge for the first-team role in the coming years, but we wish them both luck as they look to work their way up the hierarchy.
Patrick
