Arsenal are haunted by their past but Max Dowman’s fearlessness could save them

Mikel Arteta asked for perspective on a week he described as the “biggest opportunity” of his Arsenal tenure. His side are six points clear at the top of the Premier League with six games to go. They are potentially 90 minutes away from a Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid; a favourable draw. Yes, things could be far worse. But after a catastrophic weekend, Arsenal are staring at the ghosts of their recent history.

"We need to embrace that,” Arteta said, reiterating that his players must rise to the pressure that comes with the run-in. “The higher you are, the bumpier it gets. It’s more demanding, and the line between being the best and the worst, is really, really thin, and you have to cope with that.”

The walls had felt like they were beginning to close in before Saturday’s ill-fated visit of Bournemouth. Between then and their previous Premier League outing, four trophies had become two. Now nine points has become six. It could be become three at the Etihad this weekend – and then nought if Manchester City win their game in hand.

Max Dowman will hope to help Arsenal forget their catastrophic title race slip-up at the weekend (Getty)

The only pillar of Arsenal’s season of silverware that hasn’t either collapsed or suffered severe structural damage stands in Europe. The Champions League is Arteta’s greatest Arsenal ambition: “We are trying to do something in this competition that hasn’t been done in the history of the club in 140 years.” They lead their quarter-final tie against Sporting CP, only just, ahead of Wednesday’s home leg thanks to a last-gasp Kai Havertz finish in Lisbon. But it wasn’t a joyful watch for the fan nor the neutral. Arteta’s side did what was required – and nothing more – to emerge victorious.

That pretty much sums up this Arsenal team when comparing them to their elite counterparts. There is a lack of footballing expression, no spark; and to their credit, for seven months, that style has consistently brought results, even if it led to the belief that Arteta’s Gunners will probably be the ugliest champions in Premier League history if they lift the title.

But that ‘if’ is now a heavy ‘if’ and doubts are turning into panic of a recurring disaster. Suddenly Arsenal are in desperate need of inspiration, the source of which isn’t exactly obvious. Arteta called for “zero fear” on the pitch and in the stands, only “pure fire”; but how can there be flames without that spark?

Arsenal’s “game-changers” are either sidelined or looked scarred by the past. Declan Rice missed the club’s open training session on the eve of Sporting’s visit; Arteta will “see how he is tomorrow”. Bukayo Saka and Jurrien Timber are both doubts, meaning Arsenal could be without their preferred right-flank once again.

Out of their fit stars, even the likes of Gabriel and William Saliba are looking increasingly nervy after a season of imperiousness. They are two of seven current Arsenal players to have experienced all three of the title near-misses under Arteta. The Spaniard says their motivation “is to give to the people with us what they deserve and what they’re looking for” rather than prove the doubters wrong; but that cohort is growing exponentially, as is the weight of potential failure.

William Saliba (left) and Gabriel are two of the seven current Arsenal players to have experienced all three title near-misses (AP)

The pressure also appears to have rubbed off on those even without experience of Arsenal’s shortcomings. Martin Zubimendi is seriously struggling for form. Viktor Gyokeres was full of running against Bournemouth but failed to convert in open play when it truly mattered. Noni Madueke looks ineffective.

So in this time of need, maybe Arteta should look to a man – sorry, a boy – who has already shown his capability to bring life to this team.

Max Dowman produced what at the time looked like a potentially title-winning 22-minute cameo against Everton in mid-March. He injected venom off the bench as a previously-static Arsenal snatched two late goals to avoid dropping two big points, including his 97th-minute counter-strike which etched the 16-year-old into history as the Premier League’s youngest ever scorer. If Arsenal do end up topping the table, the visual of the rapturous celebrations that ensued will be immortalised.

Dowman proved his game-changing exploits in the win against Everton (Getty)

There is no debate over the calibre and seismic potential of this young footballer. It’s only a question of when he is allowed to become a staple of this Arsenal team, for his own good. He cannot be rushed into regular 90 minutes at this level or it could break him.

But as demonstrated by Liverpool’s own teen sensation Rio Ngumoha in an instrumental outing against Fulham at the weekend, there is value to trusting these talents from the outset of football matches – and in matches that matter. Fans pegged Ngumoha’s impetus as perhaps Liverpool’s biggest hope of pulling off another famous European comeback against PSG and campaigned for the 17-year-old to keep his starting berth for Tuesday’s second leg. Their wish was not granted; their side exited the competition.

Maybe Arsenal supporters ought to do the same for Dowman for their trip to the Etihad, charged with taking invaluable points off their fast-pursuing title rivals. It is the biggest occasion, the deepest end to be thrown into. But at this embryonic stage of his career, Dowman is unencumbered by the trauma of his teammates and in turn is less susceptible to being tortured by his own psyche. As David Raya noted in November, Dowman always plays “with a smile” like he is “playing in the school”; there is an innocence to his excellence.

Dowman came off the bench during Arsenal’s first-leg win over Sporting (Getty)

With Saka’s involvement uncertain, Sporting offers the perfect opportunity to see how Dowman can handle the pressure.

This is anything but a dead rubber, of course – Arsenal’s lead stands at only one so everything is to play for. All signs so far indicate he can rise to such a challenge. Fresh-faced and without the mental battle-scars of years gone by, six weeks of fearlessness that only a teenager can harness could be just what the doctor ordered.