Alan Smith backs Arsenal star to shine in place of Bukayo Saka against Sporting

Ex-Arsenal striker Alan Smith has backed Max Dowman to seize the opportunity with both hands should he be given the nod in the side’s Champions League clash with Sporting this evening.

Dowman has burst out of Arsenal’s academy ranks to establish himself as one of the most exciting young talents in English football this season.

The 16-year-old attacker, who has long been tipped for a bright future while rising through the Hale End youth system, well and truly announced his arrival with a scintillating cameo appearance in the Gunners’ 2-0 victory over Everton last month.

After providing the cross that led to Viktor Gyokeres’ opener, Dowman doubled Arsenal’s lead with a piece of solo brilliance which saw him become the youngest ever goalscorer in the Premier League.

Another record fell during the international break as Dowman’s wonder strike in a 6-0 thrashing of Portugal saw the teenager become the youngest scorer in the history of the England Under-19 team.

And while Arsenal were dumped out of the FA Cup at the hands of Southampton at the weekend, Dowman’s meteoric rise continued as he came away from St Mary’s as the visitors’ standout player in what was only his third senior start.

With Bukayo Saka currently unavailable through injury, Dowman and Noni Madueke appear the two obvious candidates for Arsenal when it comes to who should should start on the right flank in Lisbon.

The Gunners enter tonight’s quarter-final first leg in need of a morale-boosting win after their quadruple hopes went up in smoke with defeat in both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in their last two contests.

‘If you put him in, you’re not telling him to get you out of it [the slump],’ Smith told Sky Sports News when asked about the prospect of Dowman starting versus Sporting.

‘But I don’t think he would have any fears about it because there’s nothing that seems to faze the lad.

‘What a moment that was against Everton. I don’t think he needed a boost in confidence but his belief would have maybe doubled after that.

‘Look, Bukayo Saka isn’t going to be fit so perhaps that position on the right-hand side is up for grabs and Dowman is well in the frame.

‘I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he did make the starting XI.’

According to Smith, Arsenal’s desperately disappointing performance against Southampton will only have ‘cemented’ Arteta’s views regarding his strongest starting XI.

‘We speak a lot about the strength in depth of Arsenal’s squad and you would have expected rotation for that Southampton match given the Sporting game tonight,’ the former England international continued.

‘But as a manager, I can remember it myself, they say to the lads coming in, “Show me something for me to think about”, and it didn’t happen.

‘People like Myles Lewis-Skelly, it’s been hard for him, and you would imagine he might leave at the end of the season. He’s got a couple of players in his place ahead of him.

‘But the team, as a whole really, didn’t perform. Cristhian Mosquera in central defence looked a little jittery.

‘So that just cements Arteta’s feeling about what his strongest team is.’

Though Smith is expecting a tough test against a ‘strong’ Sporting side, he is hopeful Arsenal’s big players will rise to the occasion to help propel the club towards the final four of the Champions League.

‘You’d have probably settled for that,’ Smith said of Arsenal’s quarter-final draw.

‘But Sporting are banging in the goals at the moment, just looking at their last few games. They’re very strong at home and haven’t lost for a long while.

‘It’s a test, no doubt, but I always look at these periods when you have been struggling, you want the big games where the adrenaline is really pumping.

‘To go out there in front of a fervent crowd, the big players respond. And I would expect the Arsenal lads to do that. I do think it’s a good game for them tonight.’

Arsenal have been sweating over the fitness over several first-team stars ahead of this evening’s contest.

But facing the media on the eve of the clash, Arteta confirmed that Gabriel Magalhaes, Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard were all ready and available to feature.

While the match comes too soon for Saka, Eberechi Eze and Jurrien Timber, there are hopes the trio could be available for the Gunners’ clash with Bournemouth in Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off.

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