Last season Ben Cottrell made his debut for the Arsenal first-team against Dundalk in the Europa League, which came at a time when he was a prominent figure for the U23s, playing every minute where possible.
Over the past year, however, Cottrell has endured much misfortune with injuries, and there are now concerns about whether he still has a chance of making the breakthrough.
Having spent the end of last season on the sidelines, Cottrell featured for the U23s at the start of the current campaign but struggled to make an impact in the 6-1 defeat to West Ham United on the opening day and ended up losing his place in the starting lineup.
The midfielder then suffered another injury, which kept him out until recently, when he made his comeback against Bournemouth in the U23 Premier League Cup. After playing 90 minutes in that game, Cottrell started the league game away to Derby County and managed to find the net.
Such is his luck, though, Cottrell appeared to injure himself while taking the penalty from which he scored. The 20-year-old was substituted shortly afterwards and revealed this week that he had to undergo surgery to rectify his latest problem.
At his best Cottrell is a very talented player who possesses an impressive passing range and a goal threat. He is also capable of filling in on the left side of the defence if required.
In addition to his problems on the fitness front, another cause for concern for Cottrell is the fact that there are a host of younger midfielders at the club who are making encouraging progress. The likes of Miguel Azeez, Charlie Patino, Salah-Eddine, Jack Henry-Francis and more will be looking to really push on, which could make matters even more difficult for Cottrell in the long-term.
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Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird
There is such a massive amount of good fortune involved in becoming a top level player. It must be so tough for these guys who get to the cusp only for injuries to ruin their chances.
Hoping for a speedy recovery. He is young and has time on his side for the moment…
Recovering from a very bad injury as Edu and Aaron Ramsey will know only too well, is fraught with many frustrations as other injury problems often seem to occur as the player is doing his utmost best to regain his previous levels of fitness and this seems to be the case with Cottrell. Yes, there’s always a younger player trying to usurp your position but if you’re good enough, have the right technical levels and the manager likes you then your age shouldn’t be an obstacle to a career at a club like Arsenal and Arteta has already shown that… Read more »
Every time I’ve seen this guy play he looks good. I’ve not watched him for a while, mostly because of his injuries I suppose, but I always remember him being about a foot shorter than everyone else on the pitch but just looking so comfortable and talented every time he got the ball. He’s one of those players who just looks like a footballer, who loves the ball and understands what to do with it. And I always hope that players who play beautifully will make it, because while it’s one thing having a team that wins, it’s always even… Read more »