Arsenal eye Heaven revenge: Double raid on Man Utd confirmed

Updated: 19 Aug 2026 14:15 BST | 3 min read

Robin Bairner | Chief Editor

Accredited football journalist and editor covering the game since 2006

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Arsenal are working on a double raid of the Manchester United academy in a move that would act as revenge for the Red Devils signing Ayden Heaven in 2025.

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The Premier League champions are eye moves for 19-year-old winger James Scanlon and 20-year-old defender Habeeb Ogunneye, according to a report from The Telegraph.

The Gunners’ move is said to be “aggressive” and they are confident of the deals being successful before the end of the transfer window.

Scanlon has won 24 caps for Gibraltar and is a player who has previously been prolific at youth level. He played 11 times for Man Utd in the Premier League 2 last season, featuring on both the left and right wing, while he delivered three assists.

He also spent a period on loan with League Two side Swindon, where he scored one goal in six outings.

Ogunneye, meanwhile, is an English-Nigerian right-back who was a Newport County on loan for the first half of the League Two campaign before turning out for Man Utd’s Premier League 2 side on four occasions in the second half of the campaign.

Arsenal step up push for academy stars

Arsenal’s move is the latest in the battle for youth products between these two clubs, with United having raided the Emirates to sign Heaven and Chido Obi-Martin in recent seasons.

Both of these youngsters have gone on to make their first-team debuts at Old Trafford, with the 19-year-old Heaven a regular member of the first-team squad for Michael Carrick last term. He made 17 appearances in England’s top-flight last term, establishing himself as one of the most promising defenders in the country.

© IMAGO - Ayden Heaven in his Arsenal days

Neither of the players Arsenal are chasing is liable to have such an immediate impact at the Emirates.

The Gunners, though, do have a strong focus on their academy, which has recently produced other talent like Myles Lewis-Skelly and Max Dowman, both of whom are liable to be prominent fixtures in Arteta’s thinking this season.

The Telegraph adds that among the other players they are targeting are Cardiff midfield wonderkid Axel Donczew, who made his Championship debut at the age of 15, Liverpool’s Vincent Joseph and Crystal Palace’s Mylo Bernard.

These players could arrive in addition to Elijah Upson, who they snapped up from Tottenham.