Jack Porter, the 16-year-old Goalkeeper made his senior debut for Arsenal in the Carabao Cup against Bolton. Arteta named a few young players in the team sheet, and all lived up to the expectations. Raya’s injury against Manchester City forced Arsenal to deploy their young English goalkeeper. Neto, the backup keeper was not used because he played in the Cup for Bournemouth before coming over on loan. To add to this, 18-year-old Tommy Setford was also unavailable, the former Ajax Youth product has had fitness issues since the international break.
This left Arteta with no other option than playing Jack Porter in goal. He was appreciative of the performances of the young players in the press conference after Arsenal beat Bolton 5-1. The gunners will face Preston in the next round.
The Raya Injury
The Spanish goalkeeper has been great this season. He has made many important saves in tough matches and is one of the best Keepers in Europe. His improved shot-stopping and excellent distribution has strengthened the Arsenal defense even more. This season it can be argued that he has been Arsenal’s best player till now.
He was heroic in the last match against City after making 9 saves in the game. In the end, he was seen struggling on the floor. Initially, it was thought to be a time-wasting tactic but a tweet by Arsenal confirmed that Raya will miss the Carabao Cup tie against Bolton due to a thigh issue. He has been important in Arsenal’s success this season and will play a huge part if they are to win any trophies this year. With him recovering from his minor injury during the week, Arteta called up Jack Porter into the starting 11.
Arteta has been hesitant to play inexperienced players in matches but with no other choice, he told Porter on Tuesday that he will start the game against Bolton. The 16-year-old, overjoyed with the news called his family up, Arteta talked in the press conference about what it meant for the player and his family. Arteta also mentioned that Jack was calm and composed during training and the match.
Jack Porter: Youngest Ever to start for Arsenal
Jack Porter became the youngest-ever starter for Arsenal when he stepped on the pitch against Bolton. Arsenal won the game 5-1 and the manager was pleased with how the young players did. He was one of them, named in the starting 11 alongside others like Nwaneri, Lewis Skelly, and Nichols.
Porter turned 16 in July and was a substitute in the Champions League contest against Atalanta. He has made 6 appearances for Arsenal U-18 and 1 appearance for Arsenal U-21 in his career. For the national U-16 squad, he has played 4 games and has represented the England U-17.
Jeorge Bird, a youth team specialist tweeted that Porter is amongst the best academy products at Arsenal. Training alongside Neto and Raya is going to help the teenager develop into one of the best. It was an easy win and a not-so-busy day for Porter. Replacing last year’s golden glove winner at the age of 16 can’t be easy for anyone but, Porter did the job well.
Going forward Arsenal would hope to get Raya back, he has been very effective in goal this season. With him being 29 and Neto being 35, Arsenal will need a new shot stopper in the coming years. The club is really high on Porter’s potential and getting minutes on the pitch at such a young age will only make the transition smoother for both the player and the club.
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