Arsenal youngster Joshua Dasilva has spoken out about his career so far and has labelled UEFA Champions League nights as ‘special’.
Dasilva, who recently turned 17, is highly thought of in the Gunners’ youth setup after really impressing in the under-18s squad, making 23 appearances for them last term. The versatile striker can be used as an attacking midfielder too.
After his brilliant form for the under-18s, Dasilva was called up to under-19s squad to face Galatasaray when he was just 15. Here, the starlet has opened up about his call-up to play against the Turkish club in a ‘special’ Champions League night.
Champions League nights are special and I got a little taster when I played for the under-19s away to Galatasaray when I was 15 and still at Beal School in Ilford. I turned 17 yesterday but to have that experience already was fantastic.
I learnt a lot. Travelling with the first team to Turkey was an honour and actually getting off the bench for the last 10 minutes was a real privilege. The funny thing was that I almost missed the experience because I got a text saying ‘You are travelling with the under-19s’, but when I saw it I didn’t take it seriously because I thought it was a typo!
When I found out it was true I was so happy and went straight to my teacher to get permission to go. They were just as thrilled for me and told me to do the school proud. We travelled on the Tuesday, played in Turkey on the Wednesday and I was back in class by Thursday afternoon.
I had a million questions to answer from teachers and my school friends who were all very happy for me. I’ve had that experience and I was on the bench in recent under-19s Champions League games too, and hopefully I can do well enough to get on and play in future games.
Dasilva will certainly remain a name worth keeping a keen eye on. The striker is valued heavily by Arsenal’s youth coaches and is expected to fulfil his great potential in north London.
He signed his first scholarship in the summer, and then made an appearance for the under-21s in a pre-season friendly with Bournemouth. Comfortable playing against much bigger and developed players, Dasilva’s next step is to be called up to the under-21s and then potentially England’s youth side.
