Arsenal confirmed the signing of Omar Rekik yesterday, with the centre-back set to go into the U23 squad.
Rekik, who was previously at Hertha Berlin, is a highly regarded prospect and he will be looking for first-team involvement as soon as possible.
Firstly, though, the 19-year-old is set feature prominently for Steve Bould’s side, and he could form a partnership with Jonathan Dinzeyi at the heart of the defence.
Dinzeyi, who was previously at Tottenham, saw his playing time limited towards the end of the first half of the season, with first-team players such as William Saliba and Sokratis often feautring for the U23s.
However, with Saliba having left on loan and Sokratis also possibly departing, oppotunities could now open up for Dinzeyi, who is still looking to make a sustained impact following his surprise move to the club last summer.
Arsenal also have Joseph Olowu at their disposal, but the Hale End product has barely featured since returning from a loan spell at Cork City, and it seems like he is heading towards the end of his spell at the club.
If Rekik and Dinzeyi get a run of games together then they could well help Arsenal U23s to finish the season strongly.
Ultimately, though, they will be in competition with eachother as they look to progress into the first-team squad, while Arsenal also have a host of centre-backs on loan who will also be in contention for promotion.
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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird
After a deluge of incomprehensible signings, Rekik appears more sensible. No more £28 million for a reserve player I hope. And let’s hope Rekik progresses well.
Saliba was MOT the last time i watched him play. Cheers mate
They would also have a high value on scrabble board.
Interesting to to see that Tobi Omole who left us for Tottenham and Dinzeyi have the same agent?
I mean Dinzeyi can’t be rated very highly if they were more concerned about giving Sokratis game time than him!