Top News
Next Story
Newszop

Arsenal's 'next Kaka', 14, tipped for England career after record-breaking goal

Send Push

wonderkid Max Dowman has drawn comparisons to Brazilian legend and been tipped to become a fully-fledged international - yet he's only 14.

Dowman, an attack-minded midfielder, is expected to be the latest talent to emerge from Arsenal's famous Hale End academy which has produced players such as , Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly in recent years.

Born in 2009, by becoming the youngest ever player to score in a Youth League match. The left-footer found the net against Italian side , having been called up to Arsenal's under-19s in another indication of his quality.

Now Gunners fans have more reason to be excited after academy coach Gustavo Oliveira likened him to Kaka. The former and star is one of Brazilian's greatest ever midfielders, winning the in 2007 after lifting the .

READ MORE:

READ MORE:

"He plays in the style of Kaka," Oliveira told PL Brasil. "He can write his name. One day he will play for the England national team and in the ."

He isn't the first youth coach to rave about Dowman, who was the hero with two goals in Arsenal under-18's 3-2 comeback win against last Saturday. U18s boss and ex-Arsenal midfielder hailed: "Max's performances speak for themselves, but there’s still a lot of room for development.

"For a 14-year-old, his character and personality are unreal. When we were 2-0 down, he was the one who wanted the ball. [He] drove at their defence and made things happen. His mentality to keep going, despite being kicked, and staying calm in those moments is impressive."

Get involved! Should Max Dowman be training with the Arsenal first-team? Have your say in the .

image

Wilshere added of Dowman, who was just 13 when he played at U18 level for the first time. "There's always a concern when fielding such a young player in these matches, but if you're good enough, you're old enough.

"He can be more consistent but he's only 14 and hasn't even started his GCSEs yet. We need to find a balance of letting him play and enjoy because of his age but also trying to get as much work into him as we can."

Dowman made his debut for England's under-17s last month, so are already well aware of his talents.

and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our

Loving Newspoint? Download the app now