Arsenal youngster Max Dowman has been compared to Barcelona superstar Lamine Yamal by his team-mate Cristhian Mosquera
Cristhian Mosquera has been singing the praises of Arsenal’s young prodigy, Max Dowman, likening the 15 year old’s style to Barcelona’s superstar Lamine Yamal. The youngster made his Premier League debut earlier this season, impressing by winning a penalty against Leeds United and earning high praise from Gunners’ boss Mikel Arteta.
The talented teen has been hovering on the edge of the first-team squad for the past year-and-a-half, sparking belief that Arsenal may have a real gem in their squad. Mosquera was taken aback when he first saw Dowman in action:
“I don’t mean to compare, but his style and way of playing is like Lamine Yamal,” Arsenal team-mate Mosquera said in an interview with The Athletic. “His movements are Lamine-esque.
“I didn’t have him on my radar and when I got to Singapore, he was already training and playing. When they told me he was 15, I couldn’t believe it. He really is an incredible player, and I think he’s going to be world-class.
Mosquera also highlighted the maturity of other young talents like Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, saying: “You see 17- and 18-year-olds like Myles or Ethan and they play like they’re 30, like they’ve been playing football their whole lives. It’s incredible.”
Arteta, however, is keen to keep expectations around Dowman in check. When asked by football.London how senior players reacted to training with the youngster, the Arsenal boss responded with a chuckle: “At the beginning, they responded immediately, kick him! “That was the first one.
“And Max, to be fair, he was excellent. He stood up and got into the next one. You can really take an impression of someone who was 14 last year at some point when he was doing certain things to players.
“And now, yeah, everybody loves him. You just want to hug him, help him. He’s such a nice boy as well, and he’s very much liked by everybody here. And just looking after us.
“It brings responsibility to look after somebody with that talent and make sure we just do what we have to do to make sure we’re giving him the best chance to exploit his talent. That’s all.”
Mosquera isn’t the only Arsenal player to be left in awe of Dowman’s ability, with Declan Rice lavishing praise on the England youth.
“Obviously, Max is only 15, just going to be turning 16 in December,” he told TNT Sports. “I’ve never seen a 15-year-old so comfortable around the first team, it’s insane. They actually are just kids.”