Kyle Bartley

Giant central defender Kyle Bartley signed for Arsenal during the summer of 2007 after rejecting scholarship terms with Premiership side Bolton Wanderers.

Rated as the best prospect in the Lancashire’s sides Academy, he was close to going to local rivals Manchester City, but after Arsenal came in for him, the lure of the Gunners was too much to turn down.
A fee of around £950.000 was agreed for his services, the deal could rise to over £1.5 million should he feature for Arsenal’s first team.

Kyle already had some experience of playing with some of the Arsenal boys on England youth duty, where he formed a great partnership with Tommy Cruise, at the centre of the Three Lions defence.

He then broke his ankle during pre-season training, setting back his start to life with Arsenal, in a new city any young player would have found life difficult, but he kept strong and his positive attitude helped him recover quicker.

He came back and scored his first goal for the club in the Under 18s 3-2 defeat against Ipswich, his massive frame and pace make him an excellent defender, with an eye for a pass many people have compared Kyle to Manchester City’s Micah Richards.

Bartley’s season has been mixed, having featured for the Reserves twice, suspensions and injury’s have further put back his development.

Name: Kyle Bartley
Age: 16
Nationality: English
Position: Centre Back
Previous Clubs: Bolton
Contract : Scholarship