Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes Arsenal would be making a major mistake if they sell 19-year-old midfielder Myles Lewis-Skelly this summer.
Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet, Scholes argued that the Gunners should instead move on £60m signing Martin Zubimendi following reports linking Lewis-Skelly with moves to Chelsea and Manchester United.
Lewis-Skelly enjoyed a breakout campaign during the 2024-25 season and played an important role in Arsenal's end-of-season run-in, despite struggling for regular game time last term. However, the arrival of Bruno Guimaraes for £75million has increased competition in central midfield alongside Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Eberechi Eze, and Zubimendi, raising doubts over the teenager's future at the London club.
Reports emerged earlier this week claiming Arsenal had offered the academy graduate to both Chelsea and Manchester United. Scholes insisted that sanctioning his exit would be an error for Mikel Arteta's side.
"I prefer Myles Lewis-Skelly in centre midfield to Zubimendi," Scholes said.
"I think Zubimendi struggled last year. If there's one player you are going to get rid of, it would be him," he added.
Academy graduate concerns
Lewis-Skelly, who can operate at both left-back and in central midfield, coming through the youth ranks makes his potential departure even more disappointing, according to Scholes. He drew a direct comparison to Danny Welbeck leaving Manchester United for Arsenal in 2014.
"It reminds me a little bit of when Danny Welbeck left Manchester United. I hated it, didn't like it," Scholes said. "Now, Danny was a little bit older than Myles Lewis-Skelly, but when you're losing your own players, it's disappointing."
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher agreed with Scholes and expressed shock at the transfer reports surrounding the young Englishman.
"Do you think it's from his side or the club's side? That's the thing that was a little bit strange about it. It felt almost like Arsenal offered Manchester United Myles Lewis-Skelly," Carragher said. "It wasn't Myles Lewis-Skelly saying I want to leave or his people putting something out. That's where the shock came from."
Big game performances
Carragher pointed to Lewis-Skelly's impressive displays in major matches, including running the game from left-back against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu and playing in central midfield during the UEFA Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain.
"You can't play at that level unless you're pretty special at that age. All young players have ups and downs. Last season he didn't play as much as he probably would have liked," Carragher continued. "But, as you just said, his ceiling is so high for the performances he's already put in as a kid. I couldn't believe that Arsenal would even think about letting him go."
Mikel Arteta response
Gunners manager Mikel Arteta was pressed on Lewis-Skelly's future earlier this week but refused to confirm or deny the transfer speculation.
"I'm not going to talk about any speculation," Arteta said. "If there is a speculation about our players, that's a good sign. That means that we attract attention and they're doing a good job."
