When Karl Hein made the bench for Arsenal’s first leg of the Europa League Round-of-32, he set up a trend that we’re likely to see continuing until the end of the season.
Due to the larger bench in the Europa League, with up to 12 substitutes allowed, most clubs are naming two goalkeepers on it in case of emergency – Arsenal included. However, Mikel Arteta doesn’t have three senior goalkeepers to choose from.
Obviously, Bernd Leno is the first choice for the time being, and Mat Ryan is his backup. But Runar Alex Runarsson and Dejan Iliev were both left out of the Europa League squad list due to the restrictions on non-homegrown players and the number of additions you can make in January. Matt Macey was the previous alternative, but he left in the winter window.
As a result, Arsenal have named four youth goalkeepers on their squad list for the knockout stages. Three of them are eligible for the “B-list”, an unlimited list for under-21s, whilst James Hillson is on the main list as a homegrown player. Let’s have a look at the four of them, and which is the most likely to make the Europa League squads from now on.
Karl Hein
For the time being, Karl Hein looks like the first-choice youth option. He made the bench against Benfica last week, he warmed up with Leno and Ryan ahead of the Manchester City match, and it appears likely he’ll travel to Athens for the second leg.
The 18-year-old stands at 6’4” and has great reflexes. He’s somewhat reminiscent of a young Wojciech Szczesny, both in terms of his obvious potential and also the fact he can still work on his decision-making.
Hein’s progress with the Arsenal academy has already been spotted by his home country of Estonia. He’s now their starting goalkeeper, playing their last six competitive fixtures of 2020.
James Hillson
20-year-old James Hillson is the most senior of the four youth goalkeepers in terms of age, but he hasn’t spent too much time out on the pitch this season. He’s made just one appearance in the Premier League 2 in 2020/21, a 2-2 draw with Brighton u23s.
Hillson is the shortest of the four goalkeepers, which combined with his inexperience on the pitch at u23 level doesn’t put him at the front of the list for a Europa League call-up. But he earned a contract extension recently, so Arsenal evidently still have plans for him.
Arthur Okonkwo
England u18 international Arthur Okonkwo is the most likely to challenge Hein for a senior squad spot. He’s made six appearances this season, despite being left out of action for around a month late last year due to a disciplinary issue.
Okonkwo has long been considered one of Arsenal’s top goalkeeping talents. He’s even taller than Hein, which gives him a great reach and allows him to be commanding with crosses. But like Hein, he isn’t the finished product just yet and can still make mistakes.
The recent u23 fixture against Manchester United was a great example. The 19-year-old saved a penalty and prevented at least one or two more certain goals, but let in two tame efforts to somewhat cancel out his good work.
There’s also some talk that his contract may be coming to an end this summer. That could partly explain why he’s currently with the u23s instead of the first team, even though it initially appeared that he would be the player filling in as third-choice in Runarsson’s absence.
If the decision was made entirely on ability, it’s a very close thing between Hein and Okonkwo. It almost comes down to personal preference and which of the two you think would best suit a particular game.
Tom Smith
19-year-old Tom Smith has made just one appearance for the Arsenal academy this season, in the EFL Trophy against Ipswich Town. A large part of the reason for that is that he went out on loan to National League side Dover Athletic in the summer, but after just a few appearances he dropped out of their starting lineup before returning in the January transfer window.
For what it’s worth, Smith is currently getting the nod for the u23 bench ahead of Hillson, whilst Okonkwo starts and Hein joins the first team. So that suggests he’s probably the third-choice youth goalkeeper right now.
It’s hard for me to say too much about where Smith is at in terms of ability. Due to lockdown, I couldn’t watch any of his few Dover Athletic appearances, and it was a similar story last season, when he went out on loan to Salisbury but returned early after a serious injury. It’s been a while since he’s played regular football.
So even though Smith and Hillson are both eligible and named on the squad list, it’s hard to see past Okonkwo and Hein battling it out for the third-choice spot for the remainder of Arsenal’s season.