The 19-year-old, who spent the second half of last campaign on loan at Marseille, is yet to make an appearance this season. Alex Caparros/Getty ImagesAug. 31, 2026 3:51 pm EDT Updated Borussia Dortmund have made an approach to sign Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri on loan.Dortmund remain hopeful of signing the 19-year-old, who is yet to make an appearance this season. The Bundesliga side are looking to add to their attack late in the window, with their interest in the player pre-dating the anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained by summer arrival Giannis Konstantelias.Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta hinted towards Nwaneri’s uncertain future at Arsenal when he said on August 14 that he wants Nwaneri to remain at the club, but that he “needs to play football”, adding that “certain players” may need to leave this summer.The teenager was not part of Arsenal’s 20-player matchday squad for the Community Shield victory over Manchester City on August 16 or their Premier League visit to Aston Villa on Monday.
Nwaneri, a product of Arsenal’s academy, had featured in each of his side’s five pre-season fixtures and scored twice, linking back up with the Premier League champions after spending the second half of the 2025-26 season on loan at Marseille in Ligue 1.It was a challenging spell for Nwaneri, who appeared nine times in the league, and just three times from the start.Nwaneri has made 51 first-team appearances for Arsenal since making his debut aged 15 years, five months and 28 days against Brentford in September 2022. He remains the youngest player to ever appear in a Premier League match, despite Max Dowman also making his debut at 15 years old.The 2024-25 campaign was Nwaneri’s most involved in Arsenal’s first team, when he made 37 appearances in all competitions, and recorded nine goals and two assists. His emergence came when Bukayo Saka spent more than three months on the sidelines with injury.While his breakthrough came on the right wing, Nwaneri has been predominantly utilised in the centre of midfield since last summer’s pre-season. As a result, Martin Odegaard, Eberechi Eze and summer signing Bruno Guimaraes represent potential roadblocks to first-team minutes.
