Arsenal youth scholar Zac Shuaib being eyed as a possible Golden Eaglets or Flying Eagles invitee

NIGERIAN teenager midfielder Zac Shuaib is being looked at as a possible call up to the Flying Eagle after Arsenal offered him a scholarship that has seen him break into the club's U18 team.

Shuaib, 16, is a talented central midfielder who joined Arsenal's Hale End Academy at U15 level last year following a successful trial. Uncapped at international level, Shuaib qualifies to represent Nigeria through his father, Spain and India through his mother and is also eligible to play for England as he grew up in London

He started his footballing career at Chiswick Youth at the age of seven before enjoying stints at London clubs Hanwell FC, Focus Football and London Colney Colts.  Shuaib was then invited to undergo trials at Tottenham Hotspur before eventually joining Arsenal last year.

"I first got scouted at 13 in a showcase game where you pay a fee and you get to play in front of multiple scouts from different clubs around the country looking for talented young footballers. I played very well that day and was approached by several clubs, including Tottenham, Fulham, Norwich City and Leyton Orient but I decided to go on trial at Spurs.

"Due to the coronavirus lockdown, my trial was split into two parts but I’d say the lockdown helped me to focus and train properly. Every single day I was in my garden practicing hard and I used that period as an opportunity to develop my abilities.

 "After the lockdown ended Spurs decided to officially sign me. I was only there for just over a year until we both decided that it’d be better if I moved on from the club," Shuaib added.

Citing Sergio Busquets as his role model, Shuaib got signed up by Arsenal within the first five weeks of his trial, shortly before his 15th birthday.  This season, the first year scholar has appeared in four matches across all competitions for Arsenal U18s, including debuts in the U18 Premier League and U18 Premier League Cup.

Shuaib said: "I grew up in the Ladbroke Grove area of west London and I’ve lived there my whole life. My father is Nigerian and my mother is half Spanish and half Indian. When I was younger my mum would sign me up for a lot of activities like dance, drumming, tennis and football but then as I started to get older, I developed more of a passion for football and that took over.

"By the time I was 10, football was my main priority. I went to Eton College, a famous boarding school attended by the likes of Prince Harry and Boris Johnson. It was a challenging but eye-opening experience, everyone there is driven academically and a lot is expected from you.

"The biggest takeaway from Eton was balancing my priorities. I had to make time for football and education, this became more important when I sat my GCSEs in the summer. The first few months were tough but playing football after school helped me to relax and enjoy myself better.

"I learned a lot about myself during that period because it isn’t easy living away from home at a young age. Luckily, I had my teammate Daniel Oyetunde at Eton with me and it’s great to see us both together at Arsenal now."

Shuaib is currently eligible to play for Nigeria's U17 team the Golden Eaglets and the U20 team the Flying Eagles. Having been uncapped by any other country, he would not need to go through a Fifa switch to represent Nigeria.