Arsenal youth Reiss Nelson named one of Guardian’s “Next Generation 2016”

Every year, the Guardian does a feature on the 20 most promising youth in England, one at each Premier League club. In 2014 they wrote about Chris Willock, and last season’s featured player was Marcus McGuane. This year, they highlight Reiss Nelson, a midfielder and probably Arsenal’s best U18 player (he turns 17 next week).

For those of you who don’t know much about young Mr. Nelson, here’s a quick thumbnail sketch (thanks to fbj0 for his input):

- Plays as a winger
- Got playing time on the U19 team in the UEFA Youth League as a 15 year old
- great pace
- has looked comfortable at every level he’s played - and he’s played as high as the U23’s

He’s continued to get increasing amounts of playing time for Arsenal’s youth sides, and with the likes of JEFF, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, and Chuba Akpom moving up and out, Nelson will definitely benefit and grow as being more of the focus of the attack.

Of course, it’s far from certain that Reiss Nelson will end up being an Arsenal legend, but it’s good to know that there are players in the pipeline that might become the next (insert favorite Arsenal legend name here).