Arsenal teenager confirms exit from club after contract snub

Teenage defender Reuell Walters has been heralded as one of the top prospects in the Hale End setup, where he has gained experience as both a centre-back and right-back.

Walters has been a regular for the Under-21s over the past couple of years and played every minute of the Gunners' run to the 2022-23 FA Youth Cup final, where they lost to West Ham United.

The England Under-20 international has been on the bench for the senior squad in the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, EFL Cup and Europa League, but he has never played for the first team in a competitive setting.

Walters was tipped to make his senior debut in December's inconsequential Champions League showdown with PSV Eindhoven, but he failed to make it off the bench, leading to criticism of Mikel Arteta's reluctance to give opportunities to academy players.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Walters supposedly turned down Arsenal's offer of fresh terms in order to advance his career elsewhere, believing that remaining in North London would not be the best move for his career development.

Walters: 'Playing for Arsenal has been a pleasure'

True enough, the former Tottenham Hotspur prospect confirmed in an Instagram post on Friday evening that his exit from Arsenal is imminent, accompanying a greyed out action shot with a short caption.

"Thank you to everyone that's made this part of my career special. It's been a pleasure playing for this club and I wish you all the best for the future ❤️," the 19-year-old wrote.

Fellow Gunners academy prospects Brooke Norton-Cuffy, Charles Sagoe Jr and Myles Lewis-Skelly were among those to leave farewell comments to Walters, who departs after four years in North London.

The 2004-born product is one of two Arsenal players to have announced their exits on Friday, as experienced midfielder Mohamed Elneny also confirmed that he would be ending his eight-year association with the club this summer.

In addition, goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo - who shone on loan for Wrexham during the 2023-24 campaign - has revealed that his time in North London is up, while the likes of Nuno Tavares, Reiss Nelson, Eddie Nketiah, Aaron Ramsdale, Emile Smith Rowe, Kieran Tierney and Albert Sambi Lokonga are all on the transfer list.