Emile Smith Rowe is shining for England but his Arsenal future is uncertain

The beaming smile said it all. Emile Smith Rowe had just cracked a brilliant strike into the bottom corner and with that decisive swing of his right boot a whole load of frustration seemed to vanish.

Frustration at the groin injury that required surgery and prevented him building on his best season in an Arsenal shirt. Frustration he was unable to gain more senior England opportunities.

Frustration that when he finally returned to full fitness, Mikel Arteta's Gunners team was a winning one and the manager was understandably reluctant to alter it.

Having been Arsenal's second top scorer in an excellent 2021-22 season, Smith Rowe failed to start a single match in the 2022-23 campaign through no fault of his own.

But the Under-21 European Championship ongoing in Georgia has seen him score twice in England's opening two games, helping them secure a place in the quarter-finals with a game to spare.

He came off the bench to tap home England's second in the 2-0 win over Czechia and then rounded off a slick passing move to double their lead against Israel on Sunday night.

Gareth Southgate was watching from the stands in Kutaisi and Smith Rowe was asked about his prospects of regaining his senior spot afterwards.

Sensibly, the 22-year-old was keen to get his targets in the correct order - namely, win this tournament - and England look to have a superb chance - and then win back his Arsenal place.

Given his undoubted talent, if he achieves the latter, England fans could well be singing the catchy chant about him and Bukayo Saka to the tune of Status Quo's Rockin' All Over the World again soon enough.

In terms of winning back his Arsenal place, the positive news is that Arteta has no intention of letting him leave despite last season's travails.

Mail Sport reported earlier this month that Smith Rowe has been told he is part of Arsenal's plans for next season despite being linked to West Ham, Aston Villa and Brighton.

Rightly so, really, given he has a contract through until 2026 and his injury lay-off from September until early January was necessary to fix an ongoing issue.

The concern is that when Smith Rowe was fully fit again, after suffering another unrelated setback in February, Arteta limited him to just a handful of minutes off the bench.

The planned overhaul of the Gunners' midfield this summer will mean stiff competition for Smith Rowe and his starting place will be far from guaranteed.

If he occupies a central position, you'd imagine Martin Odegaard takes precedence as captain following his impressive performances during Arsenal's unexpected - but ultimately fruitless - Premier League title chase.

Declan Rice, if he completes his £100million move from West Ham, takes up another of the midfield spots in a deep-lying role.

Then there's Jorginho, who started regularly after arriving from Chelsea, plus Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey, though one or both of them may leave.

You then have Kai Havertz, likely incoming from Chelsea in a £65m deal.

He was used as a No 9 at Chelsea last season because they didn't have a reliable centre forward, but really he's best suited just behind a striker and so is another to tread on Smith Rowe's toes.

Smith Rowe has occupied wide attacking positions previously but Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard appear to have these roles nailed down.

So as much as Arteta wants to remain loyal to a player who performed for him when Arsenal weren't as good as they were last season, it is difficult to envisage Smith Rowe starting regularly.

This considerable outlay on new players also comes off the back of an overwhelming sense of what might have been at the tail end of last season.

They held a considerable lead over Manchester City entering the title run-in but blew their lead under pressure.

Arteta will be determined to ensure their challenge is no mere one season wonder and so is seeking upgrades in key positions. Manchester United, Newcastle, Liverpool and Chelsea will all surely push them hard next season, not to mention City.

So when Smith Rowe gets his chance, he can't afford to put a foot wrong. The reality is, if he is again consigned to the bench for long spells at the start of the season, a January move would be the best option to keep his career moving forwards.

But as he shines at the Under-21 Euros, with blond highlights in his hair and rockets in his boots, Smith Rowe is back and ready to fight for this place.