Arsenal youngster Alexey Rojas Fedorushchenko cannot rule out a move away from the Premier League leaders in the future with his Russian passport ‘opening up opportunities’ in the RPL.
Part Colombian, part Russian, 100 per cent Arsenal. Well, for the time being, anyway.
17-year-old Rojas signed his first Arsenal contract back in 2019 and is now one of the first names on the team sheet for a Gunners U18 side coached by former midfielder Jack Wilshere.
But, as Rojas himself says, football is an ‘unpredictable’ game.
The teenager insisted some 18 months ago that he had his heart set on becoming Arsenal’s number one shot-stopper under Mikel Arteta. But neither is Rojas ruling out a potential move to Russia, his mother heralding from the northern European nation.
Will Alexei Rojas Fedorushchenko really become Arsenal’s number one goalkeeper?
“It is difficult to answer such a question here and now,” says Rojas, when quizzed by Sport24 about a potential switch to an RPL outfit like Krasnodar. “Because the situation is always changing.
“Football is unpredictable. Such decisions will have to be made in the moment. Of course, the Russian language and (my) Russian passport open up additional opportunities.”
The Basildon-born Rojas, who represents Colombia at youth level, has been suffering with a wrist injury of late, Noah Cooper stepping up impressively under Wilshere.
Rojas hopes to be offered the opportunity to play first-team football sooner rather than later. If not at Arsenal, then out on loan.
“(Arteta and I) always speak Spanish,” Rojas adds. “You can see how smart he is, how much he knows about football.
“The most important thing is to be ready when given the chance. Sometimes, you have to wait a long time. That’s part of being a goalkeeper. And it is very important to become number one, even if in a lower-level team.
“If you sit on a bench, you will not develop. You need to be able to wait, but at the same time it is important to play. I hope I can go on loan. And then – back to Arsenal, to break into the first team.”
