If Myles Lewis-Skelly has to fight for more Premier League starts at Arsenal, it’s a battle he will relish.
Thomas Tuchel’s decision to leave Lewis-Skelly out of his latest England squad, citing a lack of playing time, has put a spotlight on the teenager’s role with his club. But Lewis-Skelly appears to be approaching the challenge with a maturity beyond his 19 years.
“I’m enjoying it,” he told reporters after Arsenal’s 2-0 victory over Brighton in the Carabao Cup in October. “It’s a different experience for me, not playing as much at the moment, but I’m enjoying being part of the team.
“It’s important to compete for places and I’m a competitive person, so I’m never going to back down. I enjoy the challenge. Being with these boys is a joy.
“The standards are high and everyone wants to play. Because the levels are so much higher this season, places are short, but you’ve just got to compete.”
Lewis-Skelly’s start in the Brighton game was his fourth for Arsenal this season. He has not yet started a Premier League game in 2025-26, making seven substitute appearances and playing a total of 92 minutes.
In other competitions, he has fared better. He has been begun both Carabao Cup matches and two of Arsenal’s four Champions League games, including the 4-0 home win over Atletico Madrid.
But this follows a season in which he played a huge part. Lewis-Skelly’s 39 appearances in 2024-25 were the most by an Arsenal player aged 18 or younger since Cesc Fabregas in 2005-06 (47), and the most by an Englishman since Stewart Robson in 1982-83 (49).
Before the England squad to face Serbia and Albania was announced, Tuchel called Lewis-Skelly to inform him he would not be selected. It was a positive conversation — Lewis-Skelly and Tuchel have a strong rapport and mutual respect. It was explained that Lewis-Skelly would not be called up to the England Under-21s as he remains considered as a senior international.
“Myles was a very good team-mate and played for us in the last camp in the World Cup qualifier in Riga (a 5-0 England win over Latvia on October 14),” Tuchel told a press conference last Friday.
“Myles simply needs more starts, more minutes. Now came a time when Nico O’Reilly had so many starts in that position (for Manchester City), so he is slightly ahead for this camp.”
Lewis-Skelly started for England against Latvia in October (Michael Regan/The FA via Getty Images)
At Arsenal, it is 23-year-old Riccardo Calafiori who is slightly ahead. The Italian had a strong pre-season and has started all 11 of Arsenal’s Premier League games at left-back. In a campaign in which Arsenal’s defence have produced record-breaking form, Mikel Arteta’s reluctance to rotate is understandable.
The arrival of Piero Hincapie — also 23 — provides Lewis-Skelly with another obstacle. The Ecuador international can operate as a left-back or centre-half, and started ahead of Lewis-Skelly in the Champions League tie against Slavia Prague.
There is one clear advantage Calafiori and Hincapie hold over Lewis-Skelly: experience. In a season in which Arsenal are intent on ending their wait for silverware, sporting director Andrea Berta has supplied Arteta with a squad with a strong emphasis on players at their prime age.
Lewis-Skelly is versatile enough to play in midfield, although there are few indications that Arteta envisions him featuring regularly in that role this season. Arsenal are stacked with options in that position too: Lewis-Skelly would be competing with Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi, Mikel Merino, Christian Norgaard and Eberechi Eze for a place.
Lewis-Skelly’s fellow academy graduate Ethan Nwaneri is in a similar position. He is yet to start a Premier League game this season, despite injuries to first-choice attacking midfielder Martin Odegaard. The arrival of Eze — like that of Hincapie — has provided Arteta with a more seasoned, experienced alternative.
Both Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri, 18, signed new long-term contracts in the summer. Clearly, Arsenal see them as part of their future, and the players share that vision. But for now at least, with the pressure to win at Arsenal greater than ever, their first-team involvement has taken a backwards step.
That’s not unusual for a developing footballer. Lewis-Skelly’s rise from unknown to England international has been considerable. Some time out of the limelight, a period of steady evolution rather than rapid ascent, may not just be inevitable; it may be healthy.
The wrinkle, perhaps, is the World Cup. It’s reasonable to ask a young defender to expect peaks and troughs in their development — but not many 19-year-olds have the prospect of a potential World Cup place to consider. Lewis-Skelly may have to weigh his patience against his international ambition.
The most practical step towards fulfilling that ambition, of course, is to play more games with Arsenal. That is entirely feasible. The speed of Lewis-Skelly’s rise from academy prospect to regular is a reminder of how quickly things in football can change. The vagaries of form and fitness mean squad hierarchies are constantly shifting.
Calafiori will sit out Italy’s first fixture of this international break. In this instance, his absence is not expected to be lengthy, but it’s a reminder that injury could strike at any moment. If Arsenal were to lose centre-half Gabriel, it would also mean one of Calafiori or Hincapie stepping into central defence, creating more opportunities for Lewis-Skelly at full-back.
For the time being, the 19-year-old is focused on working harder to impress Arteta and his staff. Lewis-Skelly is enjoying working under Arsenal’s new assistant coach, Gabriel Heinze. The former Argentinian international played a lot of his football as a left-back, and Lewis-Skelly believes there is a lot he can learn from Arteta’s new deputy. His mindset is about continual self-improvement.
Lewis-Skelly listens to instructions from Gabriel Heinze during pre-season (Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
“In the case of Myles, when you look at his age, what he’s already done, he’s just remarkable,” Arteta said in his press conference shortly after the England squad announcement.
“So don’t look at the one moment what is happening for you, because maybe it happens for the right reason and today you cannot see it.”
The World Cup will naturally hold huge allure for any young player. But so too does the prospect of a Premier League title, or success in the Champions League. Inspired by the ‘Mamba Mentality’ of Kobe Bryant, Lewis-Skelly’s determination will be to go for it all.
