There was a point early this week when it seemed as if Gedion Zelalem was the player to have received the most column inches without having been witnessed in action.

The promising young midfielder, who was spotted by former Arsenal player turned scout Danny Karbassiyoon whilst playing in America, was labelled in some quarters as the “new Cesc Fabregas” before he had even played an official game for the club. It seemed as if everybody with an interest in Arsenal’s youngsters was waiting for Monday night, when Zelalem finally made his debut for the U21s against Liverpool, to see whether this much-vaunted schoolboy was able to live up to the considerable attention that he had received in recent weeks.

Zelalem certainly didn’t disappoint. Despite the Gunners suffering a 3-2 defeat in an enthralling encounter which renders very difficult their chances of progressing to the end of season play-offs, Zelalem was an extremely calm presence on the ball throughout, frequently dictating play from his role as Arsenal’s most advanced midfielder. An extremely skilful player, one through ball he played to fellow German youth international Serge Gnabry was particularly notable in portraying his vision and commendable ability to wriggle his way out of the most difficult situations.

It wasn’t all perfect- with Zelalem evidently tiring late on (understandably so given his lack of game-time in recent weeks) and also hitting a few mis-placed passes, but the early evidence was extremely encouraging for the future, and the fact that he was selected from the start for the U21s, having not yet featured at U18 level, speaks volumes of how highly he is regarded within the club, as does the fact that he has trained with the first-team on several occasions this season, increasingly so in recent weeks.

Zelalem’s debut wasn’t as eye-catching as Jack Wilshere’s second-string bow five years ago, when the Hale End product struck a memorable goal away to Reading, but he demonstrated that, if he develops physically, which he surely will over the coming years, then he will have all he needs to carve out an impressive career in the upper echelons of the game.

It is always important to be wary with young players, particularly given that the likes of Fran Merida and Nacer Barazite, not to mention Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, shone at reserve and youth level only to fail to make the grade at Emirates Stadium, but the suggestions are that Zelalem will not remain in the U21s for very long and could be part of the first-team squad much sooner than many may have initially anticipated.

Jeorge Bird is the author of www.arsenalyouth.wordpress.com Follow him on Twitter @jeorgebird