Arsenal youngster Miguel Azeez has admitted that he is in the process of being converted into a defensive midfielder.
The 17-year-old, who has been on the Gunners' books since the age of just five-years-old, is considered as one of the brightest prospects emerging from the club's academy.
Until the campaign was suspended in March, Azeez, who turns 18 in September, had racked up 12 appearances in the Premier League 2 this season, as well as making one appearance in the EFL Trophy, playing 13 minutes of Arsenal's 1-0 reverse to Peterborough United at London Road.
Since the restart of the Premier League campaign, a handful of the club's youngsters have been training with the Gunners' first-team, including the likes of Trae Coyle and Matthew Smith.
That should offer Azeez encouragement that an opportunity may just present itself in the first-team set-up before too long.
And should that opportunity arise in the near future, Azeez would be able to offer Gunners head coach Mikel Arteta a different option for when it comes to choosing a midfielder that can protect the back-four.
Azeez was formerly known as a box-to-box midfield player, who was capable of breaking up play and then steaming up the pitch in an attempt to assist the attackers.
Now, though, the youngster has admitted that Arsenal academy manager and former club captain Per Mertesacker has now turned him into more of a deep-lying midfield player.
“I’m a midfielder, I’ve always said that – I’m a midfielder," Azeez said, as quoted by HITC Sport. "I can do holding midfield, attacking midfield or more central.
"At the moment, I’m mainly playing as a CDM, so like a number six or an eight. I’ve always said that I can do all three, so I’m a midfielder.
“Per Mertesacker, he said he’s seen a specific trait I have, which is obviously that I’ve got a good range of passing as well as that I can run a lot," added the midfielder.
"He said that there could be an opportunity in the first team in that position.
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