When Alan Hansen uttered the words 'you can't win anything with kids' in 1995, little did he know that his comment would go down in football history. Hansen was, of course, talking about Sir Alex Ferguson's youthful Manchester United side after they had been defeated 3-1 by Aston Villa, with the former Liverpool defender saying that a lack of experience was the main reason as to why United wouldn't succeed.
He was ultimately proved wrong, with the Red Devils winning both the Premier League title and the FA Cup that season - and going on to lift countless trophies over the coming years. Under Mikel Arteta, Arsenal are the latest team looking to debunk Hansen's 27-year-old comment.
Arsenal are on the hunt for silverware this season and given their start to the campaign, Gunners supporters will be believing that they could be fighting on multiple fronts for a trophy this term. Arsenal have started the Premier League season in sensational form, with six wins from their opening seven games, while they are favourites to win this year's Europa League.
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To win a major trophy would be some feat given that Arsenal have the fourth youngest squad across Europe's top five leagues. According to CIES Football Observatory, the average age of Arsenal's squad is just 24.43 years, with only Valencia, Stuttgart and Southampton younger.
There has been a clear plan in recent transfer windows from Arsenal to reduce the average age of their squad, as Arteta and Edu look to assemble an energetic and exciting side. This summer, the average age of the six players they either sold or released was 26.83, while the average age of the five members they added to their squad was 23.8.
That policy was even more evident last season, where the average age of the players the Gunners sold or released was 28.7, and the average of players signed 22.14. Matt Turner is the only player Arsenal have signed over the last three transfer windows who is over the age of 26.
CIES Football Observatory states that only 1.4% of Arsenal's squad is made up of players who are aged 30 and over - the second lowest percentage in Europe's top five leagues. Stuttgart of the Bundesliga don't have any players in their squad who are over the age of 30.
26.4% of Arsenal's squad is made up of players 21 and under, with only three European teams having a higher percentage. It's a stark difference to Chelsea, who have the third oldest squad in the Premier League. 38.8% of their squad is made up of players who are 30 or over, while Wesley Fofana, Carney Chukwuemeka and Armando Broja are their only players 21 or under.
Arsenal and Chelsea are both going for silverware this season, but it's Arsenal's recruitment policy that is currently the most effective, and Arteta will be hopeful that he can follow Manchester United's model and prove that you can win things with 'kids'.
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