Morning all. Pre-season continued (concluded?) last night with a 1-1 draw with Como. Myles Lewis-Skelly scored Arsenal’s goal before we conceded an equaliser just before the break, and there were some interesting bits and pieces from the game – although it doesn’t merit a full breakdown. I really liked Ethan Nwaneri’s performance, Marli Salmon looked very good despite his young age, although I do think 16 is probably just a bit too young for us to be able to lean on him a full squad member for the upcoming season. Clearly there’s a player of real potential there, I’d just be cautious about asking too much of him too early. I think you can take that kind of risk with a forward player more easily, whereas a defender can get scarred if their inexperience leads to chances or goals for the opposition. That said, with nothing stirring in the market with regards a defender, he may well find himself there or thereabouts in the opening part of the season, or until such time as we do find someone. Arteta said of the 16 year old: He picks things up really quickly – he’s a really smart boy, he really wants it, he’s 16 years old and some of his individual actions today were exceptional. The circumstances are what they are, that is the context that is allowing him to play more minutes. If we had other players available it would be more difficult, but that doesn’t mean that he wouldn’t get the chance to do so. But what he’s proven in the last few weeks is that he’s reliable, and when we want to play him, he can do a job. The second half saw changes, Martin Odegaard looked lively again and made a great chance which Fabio Vieira should have scored. There was a first glimpse of Bruno Guimaraes in an Arsenal shirt, and one very good piece of defensive work in particular got the crowd onside. Noni Madueke forced the keeper into a good save, Salmon had a chance from a corner, Kai Havertz had the ball in the back of the net but was flagged offside, and at the other end David Raya made a good save to keep it 1-1. There then followed a penalty shoot-out. Raya saved a couple, and after Madueke had missed with a stutter-adjacent run-up, Christos Tzolis had the chance to win it, and absolutely leathered his spot kick into the back of the net. That’s how you take a penalty. Power, precision, zero stutter. Afterwards, the manager was asked about the ’emotional’ response of Myles Lewis-Skelly after scoring his goal, and the speculation surrounding his future after the stories this week, from various sources, about him being offered to Chelsea and Man Utd. At first he pretended not to know who the bloke from Sky was talking about, but then said: He’s a very emotional player, you see with his gestures on the pitch. I’m not going to talk about speculation. If there is speculation about our players, it’s a good sign. That means our players attract attention and are doing a good job. It’s a very Arteta answer, but if you were looking for him to absolutely quash the idea of a Lewis-Skelly departure, it’s not in there. He could have said something about how much he wants him to stay, how much he views him as a key part of the squad, but didn’t. I will admit, there’s a danger of reading too much into what he didn’t say, but sometimes that’s the most interesting/telling bit. And, as I said in yesterday’s blog, I just don’t think we’ve heard the last of this situation. As ever, there was a question about transfers and what the club want to do before the window closes, to which he replied: There is more that we want to do, because every time we have an opportunity to improve the squad and bring more quality and depth, we need to do that. We’re actively trying to do so. The thing is, in the market, it doesn’t just depend on you, and we’re very clear on that. The will and the desire of the club is unquestionable, but we cannot promise that we’re going to do it because it doesn’t only depend on us. I saw it reported, perhaps via a BBC chat thing, that we’re looking at one or two forwards, and a defender. There just seems to be a measure of slight doubt in those comments from Arteta. Perhaps it’s normal, reminding people that despite your best efforts there can be impediments to a deal being done that are out of your control, and as per the conversation we had on the Arsecast Extra this week, the options are relatively limited – particularly for that left-wing upgrade many would like to see. Then again, Arsenal set the expectation levels with the manager’s post-Champions League final quotes about being ‘smart, fast and ambitious’, and with the pursuit of Vinicius Junior. Andrea Berta may well be very good at getting certain deals done, but for me there are question marks over his input in terms of talent ID, and the fact we’ve ‘missed out’ on two big targets already this summer. As someone who puts himself front and centre when it comes to our transfer business (he’s always in the photos and when new signings are announced there’s always a quote from him), there’s as much focus on him when it comes to what remains of this transfer window as the manager or the board. Right, let’s leave it there for now. Focus will turn to the Community Shield on Sunday and our clash with Man City, so let’s see what happens before then. We’ll also have an Arsecast for you a bit later, so stand by for that. Have a good one folks. ps – The Mikel Arteta – Cesc Fabregas outfit coordination last night was FABULOUS! The post Myles gets a goal, Ethan impresses, Arteta speaks post-Como appeared first on Arseblog ... an Arsenal blog.