Dixon backs Lewis-Skelly for Champions League final start – 'He's shown enough'

Lee Dixon reckons Mikel Arteta should take the plunge and start Myles Lewis-Skelly in the Champions League final on Saturday evening.

Arsenal have already wrapped up the Premier League title for the first time in 22 years, and now they're chasing the one trophy that's eluded them throughout their history. They'll face holders PSG in a final where they're cast as underdogs, though their watertight defence offers genuine hope of taming Luis Enrique's outfit.

The Gunners boss faces several tricky decisions ahead of the showdown, not least whether to throw Lewis-Skelly into the midfield mix instead of Martin Zubimendi. The youngster has emerged from relative obscurity to impress during Arsenal's closing stretch, and Dixon thinks the time has come to back him on Europe's biggest stage.

"I can't say I was surprised because I think I knew he could do it," the former defender told The Athletic. "It was an opportunity born out of Mikel needing something, and he got it in bucketloads. I thought Myles was brilliant. His control, his awareness of players around him — he was my man of the match, and possibly in both games."

Dixon stressed the magnitude of the call but remains convinced Lewis-Skelly has earned his shot. "It's a big call. But I'd probably play Myles. I think he's already shown enough not to be fazed by that."

The Arsenal icon has also drawn an intriguing parallel with Gascoigne, the former England star. "I've watched Myles a lot — he's very Gazza-like in the way that he uses his weight and his strength," Dixon explained. "He almost allows players to catch up with him. He'll go past them and then he slows down a little bit. Gazza used to do that so that when they come in and make contact again, he bounces them off him.

"Myles will win free kicks by doing that and he will also get himself in positions higher up the pitch, so it's a brilliant skill to have."

Fellow Gunners legend Nigel Winterburn has thrown his weight behind Lewis-Skelly as well, admitting he's been "surprised" the midfielder hasn't featured in his natural position sooner. "I was super excited when he was picked for the Wigan game in the FA Cup in that position, but Calafiori then got injured before the game and he had to go back to full-back," Winterburn told Metro via BetGoodwin.

"I've watched him come through at the youth level, and central midfield is his position. He carries the ball, he delivers the ball, and he's usually so powerful when he's moving with the ball."

Winterburn expects Arteta's tactical flexibility could yet spring another surprise, given how few predicted Lewis-Skelly's midfield emergence weeks ago. "Would I be surprised if Myles Lewis-Skelly starts in the Champions League final in central midfield? No, I wouldn't be," he added.

"Trying to prejudge what Mikel Arteta will do is tricky, we've already seen that occasionally he throws in a little bit of a curveball. You're playing against a team in top, top form in a Champions League final, but the way I look at him, I think he can cope with that all day long."