Mikel Arteta sends warning to Max Dowman, 16, after wonderkid was left out of Arsenal squad and dropped down to U21s

MIKEL ARTETA has warned Max Dowman he must “earn” his minutes like “anybody else” after leaving the wonderkid out of his matchday squad. Dowman, 16, was left out of Arteta’s squad to face Sunderland at the weekend and instead played the full 90 minutes for the Gunners’ Under-21s against Chelsea. Mikel Arteta has warned Max Dowman he must ‘earn’ his minutes Credit: Shutterstock Editorial The Arsenal starlet played for Arsenal’s U21s against Chelsea instead of Sunderland Credit: Getty It was the second time that Dowman has been part of the U21 side this season, despite a breakout campaign last term. The teenager is yet to get any senior minutes this season and although Arteta has promised those chances will come, he reiterated that Dowman must work hard to earn them. Sign up for the Arsenal newsletter Thank you! The Arsenal boss said: “I wish we could have him [against Sunderland], but we have the limitation with the numbers that we can have. “He will have his chance, he will have his minutes, and he will have to earn them like anybody else. “We know the talent that we have, we know the player that we have there, and we need to help him and find a way to make sure that he continues to develop and help the team.” Dowman became the Premier League’s youngest ever player and youngest ever goalscorer last season as he burst onto the scene in North London. And the record-breaker could be given the nod for the first time this term when Arsenal take on Ipswich Town in the League Cup third round on Tuesday. Arteta knows that he has to rotate his squad this season if he wants to go deep in all competitions, having suffered defeat to Manchester City in last season’s League Cup final. Most read in Sport BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK And the Spaniard has hinted he will be picking his squad to face the Tractor Boys on who is most desperate to play. He added: “You look at the players’ eyes, and they will say, ‘Yeah, I want to play,’ and ‘I want to win a game’ and ‘I want to improve’. “And they will review the game [against Sunderland], and they will be willing for more, because I know the boys.” Comment now