OFFICIAL: Ethan Nwaneri joins Marseille on loan until the end of the season

Ethan Nwaneri has joined Olympique Marseille on loan until the end of the season.

ARSENAL OFFICIAL STATEMENT:

Our hugely talented 18-year-old has made 12 appearances in all competitions this season and will now get more valuable game time with the Ligue 1 side.

Attacking midfielder Ethan burst on to the scene when he made his debut as a substitute against Brentford in September 2022, becoming the youngest player in Premier League history aged just 15 years and 181 days and our youngest player in any competition.

He went on to make six appearances in total across the 2022/23 and 2023/24 campaigns before really breaking through last season, when he made 37 appearances – 16 of them were starts - in all competitions, including 26 in the Premier League and seven in the UEFA Champions League.

The Hale End graduate has been with us since the age of eight and signed his first professional contract in March 2024 when he turned 17. He then put pen to paper on a new long-term contract in August this year.

Ethan scored his first goal for the club in a Carabao Cup fixture against Bolton Wanderers, in which he scored twice, in September 2024 and went on to score his first Premier League goal against Nottingham Forest the following November.

He is an England Under-21 international and has represented the Young Lions at every age group from the Under-16s.

We wish Ethan all the best for his time with Marseille and look forward to seeing him develop his talent in one of the best leagues in Europe.

The loan deal is subject to the completion of regulatory processes.

(End of the statement)

MARSEILLE OFFICIAL STATMENT

Olympique de Marseille is pleased to announce the signing of Arsenal's young attacking midfielder Ethan Nwaneri on loan for the second half of the 2025-2026 season.

Ethan Nwaneri quickly established himself as one of the symbols of English football's revival. Born on 21 March 2007 in London, the attacking midfielder trained at Arsenal burst onto the world stage in September 2022 when, at just 15 years and 181 days old, he became the youngest player in Premier League history. It was a brief but highly symbolic appearance that immediately drew the attention of the media and observers to this talented player from the Hale End training centre.

Arriving at Arsenal at a very young age, Nwaneri quickly rose through the ranks of the club thanks to his remarkable performances in the youth teams. Repeatedly promoted, he stood out for his technical and tactical maturity, playing against older opponents without ever seeming out of his depth. The London club, aware of his potential, took care to nurture his development, alternating between youth competitions, training with the first team and his first appearances in national cup competitions.

On the international stage, Ethan Nwaneri is also a key player in England's youth teams. A regular contributor to the U16 and U17 teams, he now embodies, with the Under-21s, a new generation of English players trained from an early age in technical, attacking and demanding football.

Ethan Nwaneri is above all a creative player. A trained attacking midfielder, he is a number 10 capable of playing on the wings and stands out for his ball control, vision and ability to eliminate opponents in tight spaces. An elegant left-footer, he likes to provoke, break through the lines with the ball at his feet and drive towards goal. His technical accuracy, combined with a rare intelligence for his age, allows him to set up his teammates as well as be decisive himself.

At just 18 years of age, Ethan Nwaneri will celebrate his 19th birthday on 21 March and is still developing. Under the guidance of a coach like Roberto De Zerbi, the young Englishman should flourish and develop his range of skills to live up to the expectations placed on him.

Welcome to OM, Ethan!