Max Dowman 'plays like' Lionel Messi and teenage Arsenal starlet 'can be anything he wants to be', says Peter Crouch
Published 10/08/2025 at 13:19 GMT+1
Can Max Dowman emulate Lionel Messi? TNT Sports expert Peter Crouch has made the comparison and feels the 15-year-old is "going to be a player, it's just when". Dowman, a tricky forward who can play down the middle and out wide, had plenty on the edge of their seats during his cameos off the bench during Arsenal's pre-season tour of Asia and at Emirates Stadium. "The way he plays is like Messi".
Dowman 'playing like Messi' as 15-year-old backed to be Premier League's breakout star
Video credit: TNT Sports
Max Dowman burst onto the scene at Arsenal during the club's pre-season and has been one of The Gunners' biggest positives ahead of the new campaign.
The 15-year-old made his non-competitive debut against AC Milan and also featured against Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and Villarreal before taking a late summer break.
He looks to be up to the task of joining Mikel Arteta's first-team squad for the 2025/26 season, and Peter Crouch has made a courageous comparison to one of the game's most iconic players.
"Breakout star? I just love what Arsenal have done with the youth players coming through there," Crouch explained on TNT Sports' The Breakdown, when asked which young player is one to watch this season.
"Max Dowman is someone who has been on everyone's lips. He's certainly someone that [in] pre-season looks like, we know he's going to be a player, it's just when.
"I've seen a little bit of him, and he's playing like - obviously this is a ridiculous statement - but the way he plays is like [Lionel] Messi.
"Literally, coming inside, going past players at ease. Obviously, he's not there yet, but he's got all the attributes to be anything he wants to be.
"I think [Ethan] Nwaneri, Myles Lewis-Skelly, I mean, he's an older statesman now, but those players coming through at Arsenal for me are the ones to watch."
The 2009-born teenager played for Arsenal U18s last season - three years above his age group - and in 22 league games, scored 17 goals and registered 10 assists.
And fellow TNT Sports expert Owen Hargreaves claimed that he "plays like an 18-year-old".
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Dowman is also playing above his age group at international level and featured for England U17s at the European Championship earlier this summer.
He started all three group stage matches and scored and assisted in a 4-2 win over the Czech Republic.
Dowman is not expected to be with the Arsenal squad for the next few weeks as he has reportedly taken a break after joining up with The Gunners in pre-season.
But it looks as though he has given Mikel Arteta food for thought after his latest performances in Asia and at Emirates Stadium ahead of the new season.
"He continues to impress, without a doubt," Arteta said about the talented prospect. The impact he had in the game, the efficiency that he shows in every attack and action, it's incredible.
"Again, he deserves to have chances, and if he continues like this, let's see what happens."
He added: "With Max it has been so fast. Even last year when he was training with us, he was doing this kind of thing in training and now he's doing it in the game consistently.
"So the three or four games that he's played, he's managed to impact and have big moments in the game, great."
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