Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta are excited about one Arsenal player’s future.
The Gunners have earned a lot of praise for how well their senior side has done over the last two years. Back-to-back second-place finishes in the Premier League is not a bad achievement at all.
The first team definitely deserves credit, but Arsenal’s academy has done a magnificent job over the last few years as well.
Per Mertesacker has taken the Gunners youth setup to a whole new level, and Arsenal’s future looks fantastic thanks to all the excellent young players coming through.
One of them signed a new contract on Monday, and Edu and Arteta have delivered their verdicts on him.
Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta rave about Karl Hein after he signed new Arsenal contract
Karl Hein joined Arsenal when he was a 16-year-old from Estonian side Nomme United in the summer of 2018.
In the following year, he signed his pro forms and has since been highly regarded by everyone at the club.
Hein has played for Arsenal’s U18s and U21s sides over the years and even went out on loan to Reading once, for whom he played five games.
Now 22, many people expected Hein to be on his way out at the end of his contract in July, but Arteta and Edu managed to change his mind.
The Estonia international was convinced to pen a new contract, and that was announced on Monday.
Speaking about Hein, Arteta told Arsenal.com: “Karl has continued to impress us with his attitude and commitment to getting better every day.
“We value being part of his continued development and I want to congratulate him on earning a new deal with the club.”
Edu added: “We’re very happy that Karl will continue his development as an Arsenal player. He’s an exciting prospect and a popular member of the squad.
“We look forward to seeing him progress to the next stage of his career.”
READ MORE: How people inside Arsenal feel about Karl Hein
Arsenal’s plan for Hein
Arteta already has David Raya and Aaron Ramsdale as options in goal at Arsenal.
The former will be signed on a permanent deal from Brentford, while the Englishman, even though he has been linked with a move away, doesn’t look like he’ll be able to find a club that will meet Arsenal’s £50 million demand.
That makes only the third-choice option available for Hein, but Arsenal are likely to send him out on loan in the 2024/25 season to help him gain some experience.
That is the best move for the 22-year-old, who needs to start playing regular first-team football somewhere to be ready for Arteta’s Arsenal, for whom he has only ever played once – a 3-1 defeat in the League Cup against Brighton.