Arsenal’s pre-season star signs new long term deal

Emile Smith Rowe has signed a new long-term contract at Arsenal exactly a year after putting pen to paper on his first professional deal at the club.

Smith Rowe, who turned 18 on Saturday, established himself as one of the Gunners’ brightest young stars during the pre-season tour of Singapore, where he scored a magnificent goal in a 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid.The playmaker has been shining in the Gunners youth setup and was a key player in the Under-18s run to the FA Youth Cup Final.

“It feels great for me,” Smith-Rowe said. “It’s something I’ve always dreamt of since I was young, so to sign a new contract with Arsenal… I’m just so happy and it feels surreal at the moment.“When I’m at Arsenal, it feels like a family. Everyone’s just so together and I think that’s helped me so much on and off the pitch.”

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Head coach Unai Emery added: “I am pleased with Emile’s contribution so far this pre-season.

“He is working very hard and has lots of potential. I look forward to working with him and the other young players and helping them to develop as Arsenal players.”

The arrival of Stephan Lichtsteiner, the experienced Swiss right-back, on a free transfer from Juventus should harden a naive side, while Arsenal have looked to toughen their soft centre with the £17.7m signing of the Greece centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos from Borussia Dortmund and the £26.5m signing of the talented Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira from Sampdoria. Bernd Leno is expected to take the No1 spot from Petr Cech after joining from Bayer Leverkusen for £19.2m, while Mattéo Guendouzi, a 19-year-old French midfielder, is one for the future after signing for £7m from Lorient.

Hector Bellerin has tipped Arsenal starlet Emile Smith Rowe for a bright future after the youngster scored in the 3-1 friendly defeat to Atletico Madrid.The 17-year-old was making his senior debut for the Gunners and wowed the crowd in Singapore with a stunning strike from the edge of the area. Having come through the academy system himself, Bellerin believes that the talented midfielder has all the necessary attributes to succeed.

“It was a great goal”, he told the club’s official website. “I’ve been training with him for a long time now and he’s a bright young player.

“He has the right attitude, the right conditions to make it and it’s all about him keeping his head in the games, train the way he’s playing. I’m sure he’ll get his chance.”

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Unai Emery was keen to blood some of the club’s younger talent and the 22-year-old insists having academy players compete for first-team places can only benefit Arsenal.

“I think everyone, not just me… there are players in all positions, with a lot of quality and loads of hunger”, he added.

“Now, with the new coach [Unai Emery], they have a chance to impress him. Obviously, I come from the academy, I did it in the same way and I’m really happy that our club pushes these players.”

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