Time right for Emile Smith Rowe to move on. He needs to play.
Arsenal sell their No 10 to Fulham.
Emile Smith Rowe will be remembered at Arsenal for many things: a fine goal against Tottenham Hotspur, a winner at Stamford Bridge, an imperious 21/22 season of 10 Premier League goals and an England cap. He will also be remembered as the home-reared thoroughbred colt who didn’t fully train on.
And now Smith Rowe moves on to Fulham for a reported £27m with £7m add-ons. He had two years left on his Arsenal contract, is an England international with all the additional weighting that brings, is a photogenic money-spinner for marketing departments, and has a decent Premier League return of 12 goals and nine assists in 80 appearances. So £27m seems slightly modest, even in these slightly more confused times.
It suggests that Mikel Arteta and Arsenal’s sporting director, Edu, were simply keen to ease Smith Rowe out. His departure is significant for many reasons, not least for Profit & Sustainability Rules, being pure profit. His exit also signals the elite realm Arsenal now inhabit; Smith Rowe is good but Arteta demands more in his pursuit of overtaking Manchester City. Each player must contribute out of possession, as well as in. Each substitute coming on must make an immediate impact.
Smith Rowe came on for Thomas Partey with 21 minutes remaining of the last game of last season, against Everton at the Emirates, and never really seized the opportunity to impress. I covered the game and you could sense Arsenal fans sighing at the missed chance. They desperately wanted Smith Rowe to show what he could do, to convince Arteta that a special talent was worth persevering with.