I'm a bit worried about Viktor Gyökeres

I'm a bit worried about Viktor Gyökeres. Not because he hasn't scored enough goals - I'm not one of those people, the goals will come - but because with Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus injured, he is playing nearly every minute of every game. It can only be a matter of time before he's injured himself.

It's good to see Gabriel Martinelli finally getting back on form. I remember him playing very well as a central striker in his first season at the club, and he could provide cover for Gyökeres - giving him an occasional rest - but so far Mikel Arteta has chosen not to use him in that position so far. I think that might be because Martinelli is a different type of striker. He relies on his pace to get past defenders and he isn't great at holding the ball up, and that seems to be a prerequisite to play as a striker for Arteta, so it seems he won't get his chance.

I think it is sometimes useful to have a different option up front, but it's hard to criticise Arteta. The signings this summer - which we have to assume he had a big hand in - have been exceptional. And we're in a great place in the league. We've had a very difficult start to the season - we've played Newcastle, Man City, Forest (who admittedly have struggled this season but were one of the top teams last season), Liverpool and Man Utd, and we're currently second in the league, only two points behind Liverpool in first, who have had an easier start. And we've done this while suffering from a long list of injuries to some of our best players and having to bed in a lot of new players.

In theory, we now have a much easier run until we play Spurs on 23 November. There are of course no easy matches in the Premier League, but these are matches we should be winning. If we can beat West Ham and Ashburton Grove this weekend, we will be in a very strong position going into the international break.

COYG!

Picture courtesy jpellgen (@1105_jp) CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

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I'm a bit worried about Viktor Gyökeres

 Highlights of Arsenal vs Athletic Club

Another good preseason runout for the Gunners, with Victor Gyökeres scoring his first goal for the club while Saka and Havertz also got on the scoresheet.

Sadly, there was no further opportunity to see Max Dowman, as he has now gone on holiday. However, Calafiori and Havertz made successful returns from injury, so only Trossard and Jesus remain in the treatment room. Calafiori still looked a bit rusty but isn't far from full fitnerss. Havertz looked sharp after coming on in the second half and scored a great goal.

The starting line-up was as follows:

Raya

Timber

Calafiori

Saliba

Gabriel

Zubimendi

Saka

Rice

Odegaard (c)

Martinelli

Gyökeres

The opening fixtures look very tough for Arsenal, so it's important that we get off to a good start.

COYG!

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Highlights of Arsenal vs Athletic Club

I'm trying not to get too hyped about Dowman

I'm trying not to get too hyped about Max Dowman but it's getting difficult.

Like most Arsenal fans, I've heard about and seen videos of him playing for Arsenal u18s and u19s and England's u16s and u17, where he has looked suitably impressive. Last December, he became the youngest ever player in Premier League 2, the Premier League's under 21 league, at 14 years old. He has also trained with Arsenal's first team squad on a regular basis.

But it's difficult to judge players at that level. To really judge a player's potential, you need to see him against proper opposition - against Premier League quality players -- against men. And we've had that chance now as he played 25 minutes against AC Milan, 30 minutes against Newcastle and 25 minutes against Sp***. Okay, these were only friendly matches, but his quality shone through nonetheless.

Arsenal's academy has produced some great players over the years, with Ethan Nwaneri and Miles Lewis-Skelly being the latest graduates to the first team squad. Barring serious injuries both will be top Premier League players, could be starters England for years to come and are potentially world class.

But Dowman is something different. With Arsenal youth coach Gustavo Oliveira calling him the "next Kaká", expectations are high. He is currently the most promising 15 year old in world football and could in time be a Ballon d'Or winner. That might seem a bit of a stretch and somewhat premature - and I don't like to make predictions, especially about the future - but if he keeps his head on and doesn't suffer any serious injuries, that's what we could be looking at.

He didn't score or get an assist against Milan, Newcastle and Spurs - unless you count being fouled for the winning penalty against Newcastle - but it is no exaggeration to say that he was probably the best player on the pitch in all three matches after he came on.

Opposing teams are already worried about what he can do. Against Newcastle and Spurs in particular, he was usually marked by two or three players. Every time he got the ball there was an audible hum of anticipation. That's incredible for a player who's only 15 years old playing in a team like Arsenal, with several world class attacking talents.

At no point in any of those matches did he look anything other than a first team player, and one of Arsenal's better ones at that. His skill, composure, pace and physique are already top class, and while he has things that he can improve upon he has the right attitude to get where he needs to be.

Could we even see him at the 2026 World Cup? There might be an outside chance, but a lot of things have to fall just right for that to happen. He may yet not even get much game time for Arsenal. However, the fact that I've even mentioned the idea, at the risk of looking like an idiot, speaks to how talented he is.

If you have any thoughts on Max Dowman or anything Arsenal, please leave a comment below.

Original image courtesy Chensiyuan, CC-BY-SA-4.0

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I'm trying not to get too hyped about Dowman