'Frustrated' Arsenal fan favourite could quit after ruthless Mikel Arteta decision

Tom Weber

• 7 Mar 2026 14:00 CST
• 3 min read

News

Arsenal star Myles Lewis-Skelly is ready to quit the club in the summer due to a lack of game time this season, according to a report.

The Hale End academy graduate enjoyed a fairytale campaign last term, when he was thrust into the first team as a makeshift left-back and immediately impressed. Such was Lewis-Skelly's impact that he even earned his England debut due to his exploits at Arsenal.

Fast forward a year, and things could hardly look more different. The 19-year-old has played just short of 1,300 minutes this season, but most of his game time has come in the league phase of the Champions League.

In the Premier League, his lack of action has, quite frankly, been remarkable. Lewis-Skelly has started only once in the league this season, and he has now gone nine games without featuring at all. He also did not play in Arsenal's FA Cup win over Mansfield, but that was due to suspension.

It shouldn't be entirely surprising that he has struggled to see minutes this season. He made some defensive errors last term and was ruthlessly replaced by Piero Hincapie, who is actually a defender, in the summer.

Lewis-Skelly wants a summer loan

With that in mind, you would think that the teenager would maybe get some game time in his more accustomed midfield position - to give the ever-present Martin Zubimendi or Declan Rice some much-needed rest - but this hasn't happened at all.

Unsurprisingly, then, Lewis-Skelly is growing increasingly frustrated. Unlike close friend Ethan Nwaneri, the 19-year-old did not go out on loan in January and now faces being stuck on the bench for the remainder of the season.

According to journalist Pete O'Rourke, Lewis-Skelly is keen to change that in the summer by going out on loan to get minutes under his belt. “If he continues to find himself as third-choice left-back at Arsenal, there might be an opportunity for him to go out on loan," O'Rourke said.

"He’s made just one start in the Premier League, and he is frustrated about that, but it’s been difficult to get into Arteta’s star-studded lineup right now. It’s something that the club might look at, and the player himself might want to look to push for if he wants to be playing regularly."

According to data from analytics firm SciSports, clubs like Brentford, Everton, Fulham and West Ham - if they stay up - would be ideally suited to the 19-year-old.

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