Arsenal have enjoyed a strong start to the 2024-25 Premier League season as they find themselves just a point behind league leaders Liverpool.
The Gunners are unbeaten domestically but were held to draws against Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester City, while it could be argued that they’ve had the toughest run of any other team in the Premier League so far.
Additionally, Martin Odegaard’s injury threw a spanner into the works of Mikel Arteta’s midfield selection as the Norwegian remains on the sidelines due to an ankle problem.
However, Ethan Nwaneri’s emergence has turned out to be a bit of a silver lining, with the teenager getting more minutes than he would have expected due to the Arsenal captain’s injury.
And now, if reports are to be believed, Arsenal want to reward Nwaneri with a contract that will make him one of the highest-paid teenagers in the Premier League currently.
Nwaneri was tipped for stardom at a young age and is the youngest debutant in Premier League history as he featured for Arsenal at the age of 15 years and five months and 23 days in September 2022.
He’s also Arsenal’s youngest senior debutant of all time, a record previously held by former captain Cesc Fabregas (16 years, five months and 24 days).
Nwaneri might be just 17, but Arsenal are already planning for the future and plan to tie him down to a new deal when he turns 18.
According to Football Transfers, Arsenal are willing to offer him a deal worth £60k-per-week, which would make him the third highest-paid teenager in the Premier League after Archie Gray (£74k-per-week) and Leny Yoro (£114k-per-week).
Nwaneri currently earns around £3000 per week and would stand to earn around 20 times his current salary if he puts pen to paper on the new deal.
New contract talks show how highly Arsenal value Nwaneri
Arsenal want to sort out their future by tying down Nwaneri to a new deal and their reported contract offer shows how highly they rate the gifted teenager.
He has made three appearances in all competitions this season and stole the show in Arsenal’s 5-1 win against Bolton Wanderers in the EFL Cup.
Read More: Joleon Lescott makes confident prediction about Ethan Nwaneri after seeing his start at Arsenal
Earning his first start for the club, Nwaneri wasn’t fazed by the grandest stage as he played the full 90 minutes and scored two goals for the club.
Arsenal have high hopes for the youngster who was hailed as a ‘special‘ talent by Gary Lineker but will err on the side of caution as they continue to nurture one of their biggest prospects.
