Academy column: A selection headache at Arsenal

It goes without saying everyone is excited and really looking forward to this game tonight. It’s a mouthwatering tie between two top clubs at a fantastic stadium in the latter stages of the FA Youth Cup, and it doesn’t really get much better than that. We are very grateful to Arsenal for giving us and their players the opportunity to play at Emirates Stadium. It’s vitally important for boys of 17 and 18 to get the chance to play at these wonderful stadiums because hopefully one day they are going to be playing there in a Premier League game or Champions League game. It’s a wonderful experience for them.

I have been very pleased with the way the lads have gone about their work in our run so far in the FA Youth Cup. We weren’t at our best in the third round against Ipswich Town but we found a way of winning, we played some really good football and won quite comfortably against Cardiff City in the fourth round, and then we had to show a different side to our game when we won at Nottingham Forest. We didn’t play great football on the night but we showed plenty of fight and plenty of spirit. To concede in the 89th minute and then go down the other end and score straight away typified the performance on the night and I was delighted with the boys.

A key player for us on Friday night will be Adam Phillips, who is having a really good season and has had some good moments in this competition. He scored against Ipswich, provided two assists against Cardiff City and then got that dramatic late winner at Nottingham Forest. He’s been very influential for us during the competition but as well as some of the other boys around him, I think it has been a real team effort that has got us where we are. The team will be vital on Friday as we are going to need everybody to play well if we want to progress.

In terms of selecting the team to play on Friday, it isn’t an easy task. I have to say, it is a very difficult time in the few days leading up to the FA Youth Cup game because a real dilemma goes into selecting the team, as well as a lot of thought into the tactics, the system, who we are going to play. It’s a part of the job I don’t look forward to doing because I know all of the boys are desperate to play and it’s not nice being the one that has to disappoint them. That’s part and parcel of my job and what I have to do, but we are a team and whoever plays, everyone supports each other and we will do whatever it takes to try to reach the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup.

We know it is a far from easy task facing Arsenal at Emirates Stadium. They have got some extremely good players, especially in the attacking third of the pitch, and they have some very good athletic players who can cause you problems. They have been playing in the UEFA Youth League as well and they are very similar to us. I am expecting a very open and attractive style of football from both teams, so hopefully we can perform that little bit better on the night.

We go into this game on the back of a 2-1 defeat to Blackburn Rovers in the first game of the U18s play-offs, but I wasn’t too disappointed by how we performed. I thought we were extremely unfortunate to lose that game. Trent Alexander-Arnold scored a great goal to get us level and then we lost the game to a set-piece, but our performance at least merited a draw. We dominated the game for long periods but we just couldn’t break down their stubborn defence. It’s an exciting end to the season with the play-offs and whoever is crowned national U18 champions qualify for next season’s UEFA Youth League, and that is a big incentive. It doesn’t help us with losing that first game and I think now we would have to win virtually every game, but we are capable of doing that. We have shown already this season how capable we are of going on a good run.

Last week we had the wonderful opportunity to take the U18s squad away from their comfort zone to experience what life would be like as an RAF cadet at RAF Cosford. That was a fabulous experience. It was also really good for team bonding and team spirit; it was an invaluable experience for us and the lads will have taken a lot out of that.