'Highly sought after' defender signs contract with Championship club after Arsenal trial

A Championship club has moved quickest to sign a recent Arsenal trialist. The Gunners are always on the lookout for talent as they bid to save themselves a buck or two down the line, and as part of that, they will regularly bring in talent to train and bid for a contract with the club.

One of the more recent trialists was Lennon Patterson, a talented young left-back who was produced by Wolves’ academy, though he recently left the West-Midlands side.

The Standard say Patterson was recently on trial with Arsenal, but he failed to land a deal with the North London side, instead dropping down to the Championship. Patterson has now joined Sheffield United, penning a deal that will initially see him link up with the club’s development side, given he is only 17 years of age.

A Blades statement read: “United have snapped up another promising young defender to the club's academy, with full-back Lennon Patterson signing after eight years at Wolves. The 17-year-old was highly sought after but the Blades have won the race for the attacking left-back's signature, with Patterson now joining up with United ahead of the remainder of the Professional Development League season.

“Patterson becomes the third player to join the academy setup since the start of the season, following Alfie Atherton's arrival from Oldham Athletic and Jamal Baptiste from Manchester City.” Patterson is likely to make his debut in the Blades development squad’s next game having arrived a little late for their win over Crewe Alexandra on Monday.

Arsenal have built up a wealth of left-backs over recent years, at least at first team level, though there are likely to be exits this summer between Kieran Tierney and Jakub Kiwior, although the latter is also a centre-back. Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelly are likely to be the main options at that position next season.

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