Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has explained that he had a "gut feeling" about his decision to make Ethan Nwaneri the Premier League's youngest-ever player against Brentford.
The England Under-17 international came on in the final moments of Sunday's 3-0 win, becoming the competition's youngest player at 15 years and 181 days old.
Nwaneri - who primarily operates as an attacking midfielder - enjoyed a strong start to the season with the Under-18s and was quickly promoted to Premier League 2 level with the Under-21s.
With Martin Odegaard absent through injury, Nwaneri travelled with the team for Sunday's London derby with Brentford and replaced Fabio Vieira at the start of second-half injury time.
Speaking to the press after the game, Arteta revealed that he received glowing reports about the 15-year-old from academy manager Per Mertesacker and felt that the time was right for Nwaneri to become a history maker.
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"It was a pure gut feeling. I met the boy (and) really liked what I saw. Per Mertesacker and the academy staff are giving me really good information, Edu as well," football.london quotes Arteta as saying.
"I met him, he's trained a couple of times with us. Yesterday he had to come because we have injuries, especially the injury of Martin (Odegaard), and then I had that feeling from yesterday that if the opportunity could come that I was going to do it and I just done it.
"I told him yesterday that he was going to be with us and that I want him to experience how it is to be in the hotel, to do a preparation of the game to be around the boys and that he had to be ready.
"If you're going to be on that bench you have to be ready. The boy just looks in your eyes and he's ready. I don't know what it is for him. When I met him, when I look at him, I had that feeling."
Prior to Nwaneri's history-making moment, Vieira marked his first Premier League start with a stunning long-range goal to wrap up the win after Gabriel Jesus and William Saliba both headed home in the first half.
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The result lifts Arsenal back above Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur to the top of the Premier League table, and Arteta was "really impressed" with the way that Vieira handled the occasion.
"I think he is having a good progression. He has missed the whole pre-season due to an injury and that was very unlucky but we know his talent," Arteta added.
"We know the reason why we signed him and what he can bring to the team but to do it against Brentford in this ground on his PL debut is a different story and he shows again his character and his quality.
"What I like as well is the way he competes. To come here (Brentford) and the way he went about the ugly part of the game, I was really impressed."
Arsenal now prepare to meet North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on October 1 following the international break.
Ben Knapton
