Arsenal forward Theo Walcott has offered some advice to rising prospect Jeff Reine-Adelaide about transitioning from playing at youth team level to training with the first team with the Gunners.
Reine-Adelaide, who joined Arsenal from French outfit Lens this summer, impressed for the north London club in their Emirates Cup pre-season tournament and provided the assist for Walcott’s winner against Wolfsburg on his first start for his new club on Sunday.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confirmed the 17-year-old will train with the first team for the upcoming season.
And Walcott, who had a similar progression into the first team picture at Arsenal after joining from Southampton in 2006, believes the youngster will adjust to his new environment after an initial settling-in period.
Speaking to Arsenal Player, Walcott said: “It may take a while just to get used to that but when he plays games he’ll forget about that because he knows he’s good enough to be here.
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“That’s why he’s been given the opportunity to play and if he gets that in his head, he will go far.”
The attacking midfielder, who can also play as a forward, is a France youth international and has represented his national team at Under-17 and Under-16 levels.
Reine-Adelaide is yet to make his senior team debut, and will hope to follow Walcott’s footsteps into making his mark for the Gunners in the future.
