Max Dowman returns as Arsenal wonderkid shown red for moment of madness

Max Dowman has handed Arsenal a welcome injury boost as one Gunners star was shown a red card during an Under-21s match

Arsenal have been handed an injury boost as Max Dowman returned to the pitch in a game that saw a Gunners star shown a red card. The 16-year-old had been sidelined since December after suffering an ankle injury, but has gradually been building up his fitness in recent weeks.

Dowman had made five appearances for Arsenal’s first team this season before suffering the injury, including one in the Champions League win over Slavia Praha in November.

Since the turn of the year, Dowman has been gradually working his way back to full fitness and recently returned to training alongside the first team at the Sobha Realty Training Centre in London, Colney.

On Friday night, Dowman was in action for Arsenal’s Under-21s where he was named in the starting line-up for the Premier League 2 clash against Ipswich Town.

Dowman played the opening 45 minutes of the contest before being substituted at the interval, getting the first half of football under his belt since suffering the injury.

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In the closing stages of the match, Arsenal saw their captain, Marli Salmon, shown a red card in stoppage time.

Salmon was given his marching orders for dissent after trying to take a quick free kick in the final minutes of the match.

The young defender was frustrated after the referee did not allow Arsenal to take a quick free kick, with Salmon being issued a red card for his protests.

Despite the defeat and Salmon’s red card, Dowman’s return from injury is a major boost for Arsenal ahead of their Premier League clash against Chelsea this weekend.

Now that Dowman has featured for the Under-21s, it’s not expected that the forward will be available to face Chelsea for the first team on Sunday afternoon.

Arteta provided an update on Arsenal’s injured players when speaking to the media ahead of this weekend’s match against Chelsea.

The Arsenal boss confirmed that Dowman would feature for the Under-21s, while also expressing hope that Kai Havertz would return to training after missing the last four matches with a hamstring injury.

Ben White missed Arsenal’s win over Tottenham Hotspur through injury, while Mikel Merino remains a long-term absentee.

"We're waiting for tomorrow [Saturday], as well as the last training session, to understand whether we have one or two available from last week,” Arteta said.

“Max [Dowman] will play some minutes tonight with the under-21s. Kai [Havertz] will train tomorrow and then let's see.

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