Ayden Heaven had been left frustrated after not making his debut in the third round of the Carabao Cup against Bolton Wanderers, but the defender managed to achieve that objective against Preston this week.
Heaven entered the fray as a substitute at Deepdale as Arsenal saw out the game with a clean sheet.
In the previous round Maldini Kacurri had been preferred as a substitute ahead of Heaven but that was seemingly due to the fact that the Albanian youth international tends to operate on the right side of the centre-back pairing, with Heaven more frequently used on the left.
Against Preston, with Gabriel unavailable, Heaven was called upon in the 80th minute and he will now be looking for further involvement with the senior squad.
There remains some uncertainty regarding where Heaven will be playing beyond this season. The defender was offered a professional contract last year but has still yet to sign it, with his scholarship deal poised to expire at the conclusion of this campaign.
It is hoped that Heaven’s involvement against Preston will help to persuade him to stay at Arsenal for the long term.
When at his best Heaven is a very talented player – he is composed in possession, reads the game well and can also push forwards from the back. The 18-year-old is working hard to reduce the amount of mistakes that he makes.
Heaven is a prospect with vast potential and it would be a shame to lose him but it remains to be seen where his future lies.
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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com
Follow him on Twitter @jeorge_bird
Heavens above, should he leave.
Leave for the additional cash being offered, I’m sure or stay and learn from a couple of the best CB’s in the world.
I think Arteta can give the players more game time but never takes the best of such opportunities. This is a game we could have given him even 25-30 mins.
I think it’s only natural we have competitors sniffing around given we have the best academy in the uk, if not the world. Might seem like a bold statement. But how many teams can boast of so many academy graduates having first team careers? Just recently we have had… ESR Nketiah Nelson Saka And then a little further back we have… Martinez Wilshere Fabianski Szcz Gibbs Bellerin (I’m forgetting some) And right now we have… Nwaneri MLS Heaven Kacurri Setford Porter Hein Salah Nichols (Again, I’m forgetting some) … all making first team appearances. Add to that Chido and ACD… Read more »
Barca?
Nevereardofem.
What about Chido? The next treasonous piece of shit mercenary with his sights set as far as the next months paycheck? F that moron.
Well call me a treasonous moron too.
Because if someone offered me 30k a week for 4 years at 16, I’m going where ever they want me.
And I reckon you would too. That’s a £6 million contract. If invested properly, he could retire at 20.
Fuck club loyalty to a place you’ve been at for a couple of years.
Sign me up.
Easy lad. These are kids.
The working title of the autobiography of Kevin Spacey’s PA.
I’m going to be a pedant and point out that Fabianski wasn’t an Arsenal youth product. He was signed at 22 from Legia Warsaw.
Next you’ll be telling me Stephan Lichtsteiner didn’t sprout out of the academy at 34…
You forgot Joe Willock from more recently but that might be intentional given our game tomorrow
How can Heaven ditch Jesus?
Especially when three Gabriels are involved
We have Jesus never know we also have Heaven, God help us win the Premier League this season 😅😅
It would be fun to give him squad number 17 if he signs a new contract.
And being a pro footballer is better than being “Crushed by the Wheels of Industry”.
Does this mean we will be knock knock knocking on Heaven’s door? Does the ground floor of his house have a Stairway to Heaven? Maybe we can make Heaven a place in our squad.
I think Heaven and his family and advisors have a real problem, quite different from Nwaneri or Lewis-Skelly. If Saliba and Gabriel are fit and stay at Arsenal, they will start every important game until they are each over 30. I don’t think either is likely to leave in the next five years.