Half an hour into his first start for Arsenal in almost 500 days, Emile Smith Rowe produced a sudden reminder of why, not so long ago, he was considered one of the most exciting young midfield players in the country.
Receiving the ball midway inside the Brentford half, in Wednesday’s 1-0 League Cup victory, Smith Rowe saw that a small gap had appeared in front of him. It was only a few yards of space but, for Smith Rowe, it was enough. Without a moment of hesitation, he burst forward.
A few seconds later, after a quick exchange of passes with Jorginho and a beautiful change of direction inside the box, Smith Rowe had removed three Brentford players from the game. Only a fine save from Mark Flekken, the home side’s goalkeeper, prevented him from scoring his first Arsenal goal since April 2022.
Receiving the ball on the half-turn, driving past opposition defenders, creating something out of nothing: this was the Smith Rowe that the Arsenal supporters fell in love with. No other player in Mikel Arteta’s squad is so adept at cruising through midfield with the ball at his feet, and the 23-year-old can only hope that his manager took note of that driving run.
“He has got different qualities to the other attacking midfielders,” Arteta said afterwards. “It is great to have him. We need him at his best and now he is starting to get some rhythm and minutes, which is really good for the team.”
After so long without starting a match for Arsenal, Smith Rowe inevitably tired in the second half. He would have hoped to produce more of those surging runs throughout the night but Arsenal’s heavily rotated side struggled to dominate the ball at times, which meant that Smith Rowe was often more focused on defensive shape than attacking opportunities.
Still, after so long on the sidelines, it was an encouraging performance overall – and certainly a step forward as Smith Rowe looks to put his Arsenal career back on track.
“It was a really tough period,” he said of the last year. “Having surgery for the first time and then having another setback once I got back onto the pitch. But this is football, you have got to face these challenges. You have ups and downs. I feel like I am a lot stronger and fitter now. I am just happy I have come out the other side really fit, and I have just got to keep fighting.”
It was clear, listening to Smith Rowe after the game, that his prolonged absence from the team has been a mental challenge as well as a physical test. He admitted that he used to doubt himself, but said he has worked on shifting that mindset.
“I have changed a bit of my mentality – just to go for it,” he said. “I have not really got anything to lose. I have tried to change that inside me. I used to have a lot of doubts. I used to question my confidence at times. But now I am really strong, I am feeling really fit and I am taking that into now.
“I think the gaffer has really helped me with that. He was helping me through my injury and often pulled me for chats about how I can be mentally stronger, stuff like that.
“I really believe in myself now. I have got all the right people around me, helping me – my family, my friends and everyone at the club is always willing to help every day in training and off the pitch. I have just got to keep going, keep believing and I am sure the chances will come.”
Smith Rowe is now competing with Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Fabio Vieira for one of the attacking midfield positions in Arteta’s 4-3-3 formation. Clearly, Smith Rowe is unlikely to dislodge Odegaard, the captain, on the right of that midfield, but there are more than a few supporters who would like to see him given a chance ahead of Havertz on the left.
There are certain positional requirements in that part of the pitch which might not have always come naturally to Smith Rowe. He is working on it, though, with Arteta’s coaching staff. Those coaches, just like the club’s fans, know how much of a force he can be for this team.
“I have just got to stay patient and keep working hard in training,” said Smith Rowe. “There is a lot of stuff I have been trying to work on in training, my positioning and stuff like that. He [Arteta] has been helping me a lot. It has been a challenge for me, but I am really enjoying it.”
