Zecevic-John has already trained with the Arsenal first team and the club have waited to tie him down as FIFA restrictions mean a first professional deal can only last a maximum of three years and if he had signed the deal in January when he turned 17 it would have meant an end date of June 2027 at the latest, as June 2028 would be three-and-a-half years.
The young winger has been tipped for a bright future and is regarded as one of the brightest prospects in the Gunners academy. Speaking in a recent interview, he revealed that recent academy graduates Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly are massive inspirations to him.
“They’re only a few years above me and just looking at the steps they took, Myles wasn’t necessarily a left-back, but taking the opportunity as a left-back,” said Zecevic-John.
“Now they’re starting for Arsenal. I think Ethan and Myles are huge inspirations to hopefully follow their tracks to the first-team.”
Zecevic-John impressed in 2024/25, racking up 14 goals and assists in 22 games and admitted that his opportunity with the North London side would never have come about if he didn’t meet a former defender who is now the current manager of the Arsenal Academy.
“I was a bit lucky,” the winger said. “I went to school with Per’s kids. I usually just played football on the field for my school team.
“One day my mum, and Per, saw me playing quite well on the field. He took it upon himself to message my mum about the whole system, and the whole trialling and all that stuff. I was quite lucky, but I'm grateful.
“Now I've got the opportunity to not only showcase my talent, but also show my family how much hard work I've put in, which they don't usually see in the training sessions, more so in the matches.”