Arsenal wonderkid Max Dowman, 15, is touted as ‘Next Kaka’ – but little-known rule means he can’t play in Premier League
ARSENAL are producing talented youngsters once again.
This season, teenagers Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri have gone from Hale End hopefuls to first team stars.
And the same is expected of 15-year-old Max Dowman – who travelled with the first team for the Gunners’ winter training camp in Dubai.
The attacking midfielder has been compared to AC Milan legend Kaka by his youth coach.
While he was fast-tracked into Arsenal’s U18 team at the tender age of just 13 by former teen prodigy Jack Wilshere.
Even a staunch Manchester United pundit has waxed lyrical about Dowman’s exceptional ability.
However, he won’t be able to help Mikel Arteta’s injury-hit side out for the remainder of the season due to his age.
According to Premier League rules, no player below the under-16 age group can be named in a match day squad.
Absolute baller
It’s early days in Dowman’s development. So early, in fact, he doesn’t even have a profile on Arsenal’s website.
But according to reports, he is well known at other academies in the country who have approached his father to let him know of their interest.
For the moment, his future is being monitored closely.
Dowman can’t sign scholarship terms until he turns 16, before the 2026-27 season.
Incredibly, he only turned 15 on December 31. Already, though, he turned heads in matches in the Uefa Youth League.
Arsenal’s U19 team suffered a miserable campaign overall, finishing 26th in the 36-team table.
But Dowman was the bright spark, impressing in games against Sporting Lisbon, Inter Milan and Atalanta.
An attacking midfielder, he can play on the flanks, or as a No10.
Arsenal youth team coach Gus Oliveira compared him to a Brazilian great.
“He plays in the style of Kaka,” Oliveira told PL Brasil last year.
“He can write his name. One day he will play for the England national team and in the Premier League.”
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Record breaker
Those comparisons to Kaka are obviously flattering.
But Dowman has been creating his own impressive history – breaking records in the Gunners youth team.
Last year, his goal against Atalanta in the Uefa Youth League made him the youngest goalscorer in the competition’s history – then aged 14 years, eight months, and 19 days.
When Jack Wilshere was coach of the U18s, he wasn’t afraid to hand Dowman a debut at 13 – again, breaking another record for youngest debutant.
After the game, Wilshere said: “Debut opportunities aren’t handed out lightly and Max has demonstrated over the past few months that he deserves this chance.
“He handled the moment admirably, sending an important message to the team that, when we introduce players, they possess the quality to contribute effectively.”
Dowman has been called up on England duty for the U16s and U17s, scoring three goals in eight games for the latter.
Red Devil praise
Dowman’s potential hasn’t gone unnoticed by sportswear giants, either.
Nike and Puma made early plays to sign him on a lucrative boot deal.
Eventually, he chose Adidas to partner up with.
And it’s not just in North London, where Dowman is being raved about.
Ex-Man Utd star Rio Ferdinand tipped the talent to follow in the footsteps of Ethan Nwaneri by starring in the Gunners’ first team.
“This isn’t to add pressure on these young players because I don’t want to do that, but I was just a bit disappointed in Arteta not giving Nwaneri a bit more of a chance,” Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel ‘Rio Ferdinand Presents’ back in November.
“I saw him come on the other day against Inter, not only looking dangerous, he takes the ball, retains the ball, looks after it, plays like an adult. He plays that Odegaard position.
“They’ve got another one under him by the way, a kid call Max Dowman. Please go online and check out this kid.
“He was 14, I saw him coaching 18 and 19-year-olds on the pitch when he was playing with them. And he plays a little bit in that Odegaard position as well, bad player.”