Luigi Gaspar to leave but Catalin Cirjan still eager to succeed at Arsenal

There has been some significant news regarding midfielders at the Arsenal academy recently.

Firstly it emerged that Luigi Gaspar, the son of the club’s technical director Edu, will be leaving the club when his scholarship contract expires at the end of next month.

The 18-year-old has found it difficult to build up momentum during his time at Arsenal as he has spent much of the past two seasons on the sidelines and he has now elected to move on as he looks to flourish elsewhere.

In truth, although Gaspar showed some encouraging signs with his ability to win the ball back, it was going to be a major challenge for him to establish himself in the U23 side had he remained at Arsenal, with the club able to call upon many midfielders at that level.

Catalin Cirjan tends to operate in a slightly more advanced position than Gaspar, but the Romanian youngster will certainly still be at the club next season after he signed a new contract.

There had been an element of concern regarding Cirjan’s long-term future at the club after he missed the entirety of this season due to injury.

However, the 19-year-old has now recovered and will look to make up for lost time by producing some impressive performances for the U23s next season.

Prior to his injury Cirjan, who has excellent technical ability, had often performed well, although he wasn’t always used in his preferred position of attacking midfield.

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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird