Ben Cottrell
Personal information
Full name Ben Aaron Cottrell[1]
Date of birth (2001-10-31) 31 October 2001
Place of birth Watford, England[1]
Height 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Mura
Number 8
Youth career
2010–2020 Arsenal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2023 Arsenal 0 (0)
2023– Mura 8 (0)
International career
2016 England U16 1 (0)
2019 England U18 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 26 December 2023

Ben Aaron Cottrell (born 31 October 2001) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Slovenian PrvaLiga club Mura.

Club career

Arsenal

Born in Watford, Cottrell joined the academy of Premier League club Arsenal on 3 June 2010, at the age of eight.[2] He progressed through the club's Hale End academy, where his performances drew interest from German and French sides, Borussia Dortmund and Marseille, respectively.[3] He signed his first professional contract with the club in July 2019.[4]

Cottrell made his unofficial debut in Arsenal's 4–1 pre-season friendly win against Milton Keynes Dons; coming on as a second-half substitute for Kieran Tierney, he impressed in an unnatural left wing-back position.[5] Later in the same season, he was included in Arsenal's senior squad ahead of a UEFA Europa League fixture against Norwegian opposition Molde, alongside fellow academy graduate Miguel Azeez.[6] Despite not featuring in Arsenal's 3–0 win, he remained on manager Mikel Arteta's radar, and made his professional debut in Arsenal's 4–2 win against Irish side Dundalk on 10 December 2020, coming on as a second-half substitute for Emile Smith Rowe.[7][8]

Having been ruled out for most of the 2021–22 season, only playing in two games, he returned to regular action the following year, but found first-team opportunities limited, despite impressing in the Premier League 2.[9]

Mura

In August 2023, he completed a permanent transfer to Slovenian side Mura, becoming the first Englishman to play for the club.[8][10][11]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 30 November 2023[12]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Arsenal U21 2019–20 —————2[lower-alpha 1]020
2020–21 —————4[lower-alpha 1]040
2021–22 —————0000
2022–23 —————0000
Total 000000006060
Arsenal 2020–21 Premier League 0000001[lower-alpha 2]00010
2021–22 000000000000
2022–23 000000000000
Total 000000100010
Mura 2023–24 Slovenian PrvaLiga 5010––0060
Career total 5010001060130
  1. 1 2 Appearances in the EFL Trophy
  2. ↑ Appearances in the UEFA Europa League

References

  1. 1 2 3 Ben Cottrell at WorldFootball.net
  2. ↑ "Ben Cottrell". arsenal.com. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  3. ↑ O'Brien, Sean (13 November 2018). "Borussia Dortmund and Marseille looking to raid Arsenal academy for wonderkid Ben Cottrell". talksport.com. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  4. ↑ "Lopez, Cottrell, Hillson sign first pro contracts". arsenal.com. 2 July 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  5. ↑ De Roche, Art (26 August 2020). "Ben Cottrell sets the tone for Arsenal youngsters aiming to breakthrough under Mikel Arteta". football.london. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  6. ↑ "Miguel Azeez and Ben Cottrell included in Arsenal squad travelling to Molde". metro.co.uk. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  7. ↑ "Eddie Nketiah helps fire Arsenal to victory over Dundalk". guernseypress.com. 10 December 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Ben Cottrell makes permanent move to NS Mura". arsenal.com. 1 August 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  9. ↑ Evans, Ben (16 April 2023). "Arsenal coach loved Ben Cottrell's performance on Friday, Arteta's only played him once". tbrfootball.com. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  10. ↑ "Mura je uspešno poslovala s kultnim Arsenalom: V Murski Soboti bo kariero nadaljeval 21-letni angleški vezist Ben Cottrell" [Mura did successful business with the iconic Arsenal: 21-year-old English midfielder Ben Cottrell will continue his career in Murska Sobota]. planetnogomet.si (in Slovenian). 29 July 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  11. ↑ "Ben Cottrell je čarno-bejli!" [Ben Cottrell is charming!]. nsmura.si (in Slovenian). 1 August 2023. Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  12. ↑ Ben Cottrell at Soccerway
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