Arsenal have left the door open for Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri to leave the club this summer, but only if an opportunity emerges that works for both the players and the Gunners.
Arsenal CEO Richard Garlick confirmed the club is not actively looking to sell either academy graduate, despite growing transfer speculation surrounding the highly-rated teenagers.
Both players, aged just 19, have already established themselves around Arsenal’s first-team setup after progressing through the club’s academy.
Lewis-Skelly enjoyed a particularly impressive end to last season, playing a key role during the title run-in and starting Arsenal’s Champions League final.
Nwaneri, meanwhile, spent the second half of last season on loan at Marseille as Arsenal continued to manage his development.
Yet their futures have become a talking point during the summer transfer window, with Chelsea and Manchester United among the clubs linked with Lewis-Skelly.
Garlick insists Arsenal are happy with the progress of both players and have no immediate plan to push either youngster towards the exit.
“There’s been a lot of speculation around players,” Garlick said.
“I can’t stop other clubs being interested. I think Myles has had a fantastic end to last season and has started this one really well — we’re very, very happy with him.
“Ethan has had a great pre-season as well and I think it’s just a case of looking at what opportunities there are that will help both of those in terms of their career moving forward.
“We are not actively looking at selling those homegrown players but if the right opportunity came up — right for them and the club — we’d obviously consider that.”
That stance could become significant as Arsenal balance sporting ambitions with the financial demands of the Premier League’s new Squad Cost Ratio rules.
Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri are both products of Arsenal’s academy, meaning any significant transfer fee received for either player could be recorded as pure profit under the relevant accounting rules.
The financial angle is particularly important following the replacement of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) with the new Squad Cost Ratio (SCR).
Under SCR, clubs can spend up to 85% of their revenue on player fees, wages and related contracts. For clubs competing in European competition, however, the limit is 70%.
That creates an obvious financial incentive for clubs to maximise the value of academy graduates.
But Arsenal’s position suggests financial benefit alone will not force the club into selling either player.
The biggest question may ultimately be football rather than finance.
Lewis-Skelly started Arsenal’s 3-0 Community Shield victory over Manchester City, demonstrating that he remains firmly in Mikel Arteta’s plans.
However, the arrival of Bruno Guimaraes has increased competition for midfield places, potentially making regular starts harder to secure.
Nwaneri’s situation is even more straightforward: at his age, consistent first-team football is vital to his development.
Arteta has already acknowledged that playing time could influence the youngster’s future.
“I want him to be at the club but something is in the medium-long term what is best for the player as well,” he said.
“Ethan needs to play football and if he stays here it’s because we can guarantee that he can have those minutes.”
The message from Arsenal is clear: Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri are not for sale at any price, but the right proposal could change the conversation.
For two players who have already shown they can perform at the highest level, Arsenal must now decide whether their immediate development is best served at the Emirates or elsewhere.
With the new Premier League season approaching, that decision could become one of Arteta’s biggest squad-management challenges.
Arsenal begin their title defence against newly promoted Coventry City on Friday, August 22, with the spotlight likely to fall heavily on their young stars.
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