Arsenal u21 win gives hint at first-team call-ups vs Bolton

Arsenal’s dramatic u21 win over Stoke City on Monday provided an early hint at which youngsters are likely to be involved against Bolton Wanderers in midweek.

The Arsenal u21s took on Stoke City on Monday, looking to maintain their 100% record in the 2024/25 Premier League 2 and stay top of the table.

The young Gunners ended up achieving that goal at the last possible moment, with Nathan Butler-Oyedeji finding the top corner in the sixth minute of second-half injury time.

The match had been a frustrating one to that point, with neither side able to break the deadlock for the first 95 minutes. Michal Rosiak perhaps went closest for Arsenal, but his free-kick was saved by former Gunner Noah Cooper.

Eventually, Arsenal got their winner. But more than just offering the u21s the chance to go back to the top of the PL2, Monday’s match also gave us some hints at Mikel Arteta’s first-team squad against Bolton Wanderers.

The Arsenal first team are dealing with a number of injuries at the moment, with five confirmed absentees, one suspension, and indications that they may have suffered further injury setbacks against Manchester City.

There’s also some expectation of rotation for a game against League One Bolton Wanderers. The injuries combined with the strength of the opposition make this a perfect opportunity for a few youth players to step up.

The most likely candidates for starts are Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, neither of whom were involved on Monday.

On top of those two midfielders, right-back Josh Nichols and goalkeeper Jack Porter weren’t with the u21s, having been in the Manchester City squad the previous day.

Winger Ismeal Kabia was perhaps the only surprise absentee from the u21 squad, given he’d played in every previous u21/u19 match this season. He has two goals and two assists in five appearances in 2024/25.

Conversely, it was somewhat surprising to see Butler-Oyedeji playing for the u21s. The youngster just won the Premier League 2’s Player of the Month award, and he seemed like an obvious choice for a first-team call.

It’s not impossible the winger could still be on the bench against Bolton, it’s just not as likely now.

Striker Khayon Edwards wasn’t involved against Stoke, and it’s not impossible he gets a first-team call-up in the absence of Leandro Trossard. But Edwards’ absence was enforced, given he’d received a red card in the u21s’ previous game.

Training photos might offer us a further hint at the youth players set for involvement on Wednesday, but after that we’ll just have to wait for the squad announcement.