Phil Sumbler
Charlie Patino is enjoying a strong loan spell at Swansea and now has clear ambitions to break into the first team at Arsenal when he returns to the Emirates Stadium at the end of the season.
Patino does have two first team appearances under his belt at the Gunners which included a goal on his debut in December 2021 when Arsenal despatched Sunderland 5-1 in the Carabao Cup.
After a loan spell at Blackpool last season he signed on at Swansea this summer on a season long loan in a bid to get more first team experience and prepare him for what he wants to be a run at the Arsenal first team.
Patino was an unused substitute in both England’s Under-21 internationals during the current international break but his experience with the squad will help him as well as what now seems to be a starting line up in the Swans squad thanks to a run of form that has already seen him make his mark both on the scoresheet and assisting for others.
And it is more experience like that which Patino believes will see him able to push towards that starting place in the Arsenal squad as he explained to the Mail “It’s about getting a lot of minutes and playing a lot of games. I’ve always wanted to create a lot of chances and get goals and assists.
“I want to keep racking up the numbers and helping the team to get as high as possible. Swansea is a massive club, got a big history, were in the Premier League a couple of years ago and we want to get them back to where they belong.
“I remember at Blackpool last year playing against them, the toughest game that I’ve ever played in, so to be playing for them this season is really just an amazing feeling.
“Training with the Arsenal first team every day has helped me develop on and off the pitch.
“It made me really confident. I kept going back and it felt like I was part of the first team because I was learning under them. They’ve got some real leaders, like [Martin] Odegaard, like Bukayo — he’s come up through the ranks — and getting advice from him and Smith Rowe has been really good for me.
“When I first went over to train with the first team, Emile, Eddie [Nketiah], Bukayo, they came over to me, put their arms around my shoulder and just said, “Enjoy yourself, play with a smile on your face and just express yourself”.
“Physicality is one of the main aspects I want to improve,’ he says. ‘I go in and do extra recovery, extra gym sessions to better myself as a player. I think it’s important because if I want to step up and be a Premier League player, the games are a lot quicker now and you have to be ready for one-v-one duels and battles that happen all over the pitch.
“But ultimately, it’s about getting to where you want to get to, and that’s the same for me. I want to play in the first team at Arsenal and being here is a massive pathway to help me do that.”
