Arsenals young talent stealing the show on tour

Max Dowman made his debut for Arsenal Under-18s in September 2023, at the age of 13

It has been a busy summer for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, with six new signings - including striker Viktor Gyokeres - brought in to boost their Premier League title hopes.

However, it is one of the two 15-year-old academy players on their pre-season tour of Asia who has captured the attention.

Max Dowman and Marli Salmon are the two youngest players in the squad.

And attacking midfielder Dowman has shown in friendlies against AC Milan and Newcastle exactly why there is so much excitement about his potential.

Having first trained with the first team when he was 14, Dowman was part of the senior squad that travelled to Dubai in January for their winter training camp.

There was even talk around that time about the England youth international getting a call-up to the side following an injury crisis, with key forwards Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus all sidelined at various times through injury.

Dowman replaced England international Saka in both pre-season friendlies. While he showed moments of skill in the AC Milan match, it was the performance against Newcastle that showed why he has been tipped for a Premier League debut this season.

A delightful dribble into the area, which ended with Dowman being fouled by Joelinton for a penalty that handed Arsenal a 3-2 victory, was one of the standout moments of the game.

"It is special," said Arteta when asked about the youngsters display against Newcastle.

"Obviously what hes done today against this team in the time that he had on the pitch is something certainly not common to witness for a 15-year-old.

"We are extremely happy to have him. I think, again, the environment that hes around in, his family, the people at the club and around the academy as well, super helpful, because they put him into this position so early in his journey - having a real chance and a real presence when he plays for the first time."

Having joined Real Madrid at 16 after being courted by many of Europes elite clubs, Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard says he will be "able to share my experience" with Dowman and England Under-16 international defender Salmon.

"I think the whole squad is really good in this way to help the young players," said the Norwegian, 26. "I think myself, I just try to share my experience, guide them in the right direction, help them to keep the right mindset, because you can see that the quality is obviously there.

"Just trying to help them to have the right mindset and to help them feel good in the team and to kind of let them shine and do their thing.

"Theyve been amazing on this tour and you can also see the quality. Itll be exciting to see in the future."

Dowman represented the England Under-17s in the Euros in the summer and became the competitions youngest scorer when he netted in the win over the Czech Republic.

At Arsenal he is playing three years above his age group. He scored 19 goals and provided five assists in 23 games last season, with 17 of those attacking returns coming in the last seven matches of the under-18 Premier League South season (14 goals, three assists).

Arsenals England midfielder Declan Rice has called him an "unreal talent" and, given he is eligible to play in the Premier League, Dowman will be hoping to live up to the hype and follow Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, both 18, into the first team after coming through the clubs academy.