by Zenith » Thu Sep 17, 2020 1:58 pm
Now that Emi Martínez has signed for Aston Villa and with Matt Macey potentially on the way out as well, it looks like either Dejan Iliev or Karl Hein will be promoted to third-choice goalkeeper.
Dejan Iliev—now 25 years old—has been with Arsenal since 2012 but, despite that, his experience at senior level is rather limited. Unlike Macey, Iliev hasn't publicly expressed his desire to leave, but—going by recent reports—another loan move also doesn't look unlikely.
Karl Hein is just 18, but already a highly-rated goalkeeper, having recently made his debut for Estonia's national team. Since Arteta took over he has already trained with the first team on several occasions, meaning it's not at all unthinkable that he'll be considered for the role.
Another exciting prospect is 19-year-old Arthur Okonkwo. According to Jeorge Bird, he made a 'major impact' during the 2018-19 season but subsequently missed the entirety of last season due to personal reasons. Because of this, it's unlikely that he's being considered, but hopefully he can quickly regain his old form and continue to grow from there on.