Inside Myles Lewis-Skelly’s Arsenal contract: His role in the deal, mamba mentality and Arteta’s trust

迈尔斯·刘易斯-斯凯利的阿森纳合同内幕：他在谈判中的角色、曼巴精神与阿尔特塔的信任

James McNicholas and David Ornstein June 27, 2025 3:24 pm

When the time came for Myles Lewis-Skelly’s contract talks with Arsenal to begin, there was a surprising speaker at the first key meeting: Myles himself.

当迈尔斯·刘易斯-斯凯利与阿森纳的合同谈判开始时，在首次关键会议上出现了一位令人意外的发言人：迈尔斯本人。

Lewis-Skelly joined Arsenal at eight years old. Now 18, he was presenting in the boardroom to some of the most influential figures at the club — manager Mikel Arteta, academy manager Per Mertesacker, then-interim sporting director Jason Ayto and director of football operations James King were all in attendance.

刘易斯-斯凯利8岁就加入了阿森纳。如今18岁的他，在董事会会议室向俱乐部一些最具影响力的人物进行了陈述——主教练米克尔·阿尔特塔、青训学院主管默特萨克、时任临时体育总监杰森·艾托以及足球运营总监詹姆斯·金均出席了会议。

It is rare for any footballer to do that. For an 18-year-old, it is unheard of.

这对任何足球运动员来说都属罕见。对于一位18岁的球员来说，更是闻所未闻。

Lewis-Skelly described his experiences at Hale End and the core values it has instilled in him. Then he spoke about his own values and outlook. He touched on his belief in visualisation and gave examples of other athletes and the processes that have inspired him, such as Kobe Bryant’s ‘mamba mentality’ for having a killer instinct on the court. Lewis-Skelly spoke about his desire to keep the No 49 shirt, because of what it means to him, the club and its supporters.

刘易斯-斯凯利描述了他在黑尔恩德的经历以及那里灌输给他的核心价值观。接着他谈到了自己的价值观和人生观。他提及了自己对心理意象训练的信念，并举例说明了其他运动员以及激励过他的过程，例如科比·布莱恩特在球场上拥有杀手本能的“曼巴精神”。刘易斯-斯凯利还谈到了他希望保留49号球衣的愿望，因为这对他、对俱乐部及其支持者都具有特殊意义。

He introduced the wider team he envisions supporting him through his career, and spoke of looking forward to their long-term collaboration with Arsenal.

他介绍了自己设想在职业生涯中支持他的更广泛团队，并表示期待他们与阿森纳的长期合作。

For those in attendance, it was a unique experience. The approach designed by Lewis-Skelly’s team was original, creative and insightful. Football executives are not accustomed to being presented to by players, so there were naturally some reservations.

对与会者而言，这是一次独特的体验。刘易斯-斯凯利团队设计的方法新颖、富有创意且见解深刻。足球高管们并不习惯由球员来向他们做陈述，因此自然产生了一些疑虑。

But there was also enormous pride at seeing an academy player, a local boy, take the floor and speak with maturity and conviction.

但看到一位青训球员、一个本地男孩能够站出来，以成熟且坚定的态度发言，也让人感到无比自豪。

Lewis-Skelly’s presentation set in motion a period of negotiation that has culminated in a five-year contract that will make him one of the highest-paid teenagers in world football.

刘易斯-斯凯利的陈述启动了一段谈判期，最终达成了一份为期五年的合同，这将使他成为世界足坛收入最高的青少年球员之一。

For this article, The Athletic spoke to people with an understanding of the discussions to detail how the deal was done.

为了撰写本文，《The Athletic》采访了了解谈判内情的人士，以详述这笔交易是如何达成的。

It has been a collaborative process. Lewis-Skelly is represented by his mother, Marcia Lewis. Lewis is the founder of No 1 Fan Club, which serves as a network and resource for the parents of young footballers. As part of her self-education in football, she studied for a master’s degree in football business and passed FIFA’s football agent exam — and still serves as Myles’ representative.

这是一个协作的过程。刘易斯-斯凯利的代表是他的母亲玛西娅·刘易斯。刘易斯是“头号球迷俱乐部”的创始人，该组织为年轻足球运动员的父母提供交流网络和资源。作为自我足球教育的一部分，她攻读了足球商业硕士学位，并通过了国际足联的足球经纪人考试——目前她仍担任迈尔斯的代表。

She does not guide her son’s journey alone, however. Lewis has assembled a team of skilled experts to help manage Lewis-Skelly’s career.

然而，她并非独自指导儿子的职业生涯。刘易斯组建了一个由资深专家组成的团队，来协助管理刘易斯-斯凯利的职业生涯。

Among them is renowned sports lawyer Daniel Geey, who has a significant track record in working closely with families, as well as Arsenal. He was part of the talks on Declan Rice’s Arsenal contract with the midfielder’s family, and Alessia Russo’s contract, working alongside her brother, Luca.

其中包括著名体育律师丹尼尔·吉，他在与球员家庭以及阿森纳俱乐部密切合作方面拥有丰富经验。他曾参与赖斯与阿森纳合同的谈判（与球员家人合作），以及鲁索的合同谈判（与其兄弟卢卡合作）。

The idea was to surround Lewis-Skelly with specialists in their respective fields to support the whole family.

其理念是用各自领域的专家围绕刘易斯-斯凯利，为整个家庭提供支持。

While Lewis-Skelly’s priority is his football, he takes an interest in every aspect of his career. He wanted to play an active role in the talks.

尽管刘易斯-斯凯利的首要任务是足球，但他对职业生涯的方方面面都抱有浓厚兴趣。他希望在谈判中扮演积极的角色。

Marcia did not want a traditional meeting distilled to a transactional exchange of financial expectations. She wanted to present something deeper — something that illustrated Lewis-Skelly’s value, but also showed his journey to this point and their aspirations to keep working with Arsenal.

玛西娅不希望会议沦为传统的、仅限于财务预期交换的交易。她希望呈现更深层次的内容——既能体现刘易斯-斯凯利的价值，又能展示他迄今的成长历程以及他们与阿森纳持续合作的愿望。

As well as Myles, both Marcia and his father, Paul, spoke on their experience as academy parents. It was important to them that Mertesacker was present, given his role in Lewis-Skelly’s education. Mertesacker and under-18s coach Adam Birchall have been integral to Lewis-Skelly’s development.

除了迈尔斯，玛西娅和他的父亲保罗也分享了他们作为青训球员家长的经验。默特萨克的出席对他们很重要，因为他在刘易斯-斯凯利的培养过程中扮演了重要角色。默特萨克和U18队教练伯查尔对刘易斯-斯凯利的发展至关重要。

The presentation also included a section from Analytics FC, the sports consultancy that has provided data for Kevin De Bruyne and Ben White in high-profile contract negotiations. Their findings were not solely focused on Lewis-Skelly’s individual performance, but were about putting him in context and demonstrating an awareness of the competitive landscape. After his contract was announced, Lewis-Skelly posted a shared collaboration with Instagram that focussed on his upbringing and journey (see below).

陈述中还包含了来自体育咨询公司Analytics FC的分析报告，该公司曾在凯文·德布劳内和本·怀特的高调合同谈判中提供数据支持。他们的分析结果不仅关注刘易斯-斯凯利的个人表现，还着眼于将他置于更广阔的背景中，并展示对竞争格局的认知。在合同宣布后，刘易斯-斯凯利在Instagram上发布了一段合作内容，重点讲述了他的成长经历和旅程（见下图）。

Although there had been informal conversations since the turn of the year, the renewal process began in earnest in March. This was during Ayto’s time as interim sporting director, with Andrea Berta picking up the baton after his appointment at the end of that month.

尽管自年初以来已有非正式沟通，但续约进程在3月才真正开始。当时艾托担任临时体育总监，而安德烈亚·贝尔塔在当月底被任命后接手了这项工作。

Within weeks of his arrival, Berta had reached out to introduce himself to the Lewis-Skelly camp. Despite being new in the job, he impressed with his knowledge of the player. Berta makes a habit of watching training at London Colney and has been struck by Lewis-Skelly’s personality and ability.

贝尔塔上任几周内就联系了刘易斯-斯凯利的团队进行自我介绍。尽管新官上任，但他对该球员的了解给人留下了深刻印象。贝尔塔养成了观看伦敦科尔尼训练的习惯，并对刘易斯-斯凯利的个性和能力印象深刻。

But the man who provided continuity, and who shepherded the deal from outset to completion, was director of football operations James King.

然而，提供连续性、并将这笔交易从开始引导至完成的关键人物，是足球运营总监詹姆斯·金。

King was hired in 2024 to replace Richard Garlick, who had stepped up to become managing director. King had previously been senior legal counsel at the club before leaving to become general counsel at the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA).

金于2024年被聘用，接替晋升为董事总经理的理查德·加里克。金此前曾在俱乐部担任高级法律顾问，之后离开成为职业足球运动员协会（PFA）的总法律顾问。

He is regarded as a skilled negotiator, but also very personable. His time with the PFA, allied with Marcia’s interests in footballers and family, meant they quickly found common ground and struck up a good rapport. King became the primary point of contact on the deal. His importance is reflected in his presence at the official signing and photography.

他被视为一位谈判高手，同时也非常和蔼可亲。他在PFA的经历，加上玛西娅对足球运动员和家庭的关注，使他们迅速找到了共同点并建立了良好的关系。金成为了这笔交易的主要联系人。他的重要性体现在他出席了正式签约仪式和拍照环节。

The other key individual was Arteta. Lewis-Skelly has great respect for the Arsenal manager, as well as enormous gratitude: Arteta instigated the positional switch to left-back that has accelerated his development. He saw something others did not.

另一位关键人物是阿尔特塔。刘易斯-斯凯利对这位阿森纳主帅怀有极大的敬意和深深的感激：正是阿尔特塔推动了他改打左后卫的位置，加速了他的发展。阿尔特塔看到了别人没有看到的东西。

Lewis-Skelly recognises the faith Arteta has placed in him and is determined to repay it. Towards the end of last season, he made a point of expressing his thanks to the Arsenal manager.

刘易斯-斯凯利深知阿尔特塔对他的信任，并决心回报这份信任。在上赛季末，他特意向阿森纳主教练表达了感谢。

“I went to the boss’ office and sat down,” says Lewis-Skelly. “I said, ‘Boss, first things first: I’m grateful for you putting trust in me this season. If I wasn’t at left-back, I wouldn’t go on the trajectory or the journey that I am on now.

“我去了老板的办公室坐下，”刘易斯-斯凯利说道。“我说，‘老板，首先：我很感激您本赛季对我的信任。如果我没有改打左后卫，就不会走上现在这条发展轨迹或旅程。

“I told him I’m grateful for him, that he changed my life, and helped change my family’s life. He seemed happy with what I had to say.”

“我告诉他我很感激他，他改变了我的生活，也帮助改变了我家人的生活。他似乎对我所说的话感到高兴。”

There has been speculation over whether Lewis-Skelly will remain at left-back or revert to a midfield role, but his position on the pitch was not part of the talks.

一直有人猜测刘易斯-斯凯利会继续留在左后卫位置还是回归中场角色，但他在球场上的位置并非此次谈判的内容。

For the time being, he is just happy to be playing. He is relishing the possibility of being England’s left-back at next summer’s World Cup.

目前，他只为能上场比赛感到高兴。他正憧憬着成为明年夏天世界杯上英格兰队左后卫的可能性。

Given that he was set to become a free agent in 2026, there was inevitably interest from other clubs. Throughout the process, however, Lewis-Skelly’s priority was always to stay with Arsenal.

鉴于他原本将在2026年成为自由球员，其他俱乐部不可避免地对他产生了兴趣。然而，在整个过程中，刘易斯-斯凯利的首要目标始终是留在阿森纳。

From the outset, the ambition was always to have Lewis-Skelly’s contract signed before he returned to training at London Colney in mid-July.

从一开始，目标就始终是在刘易斯-斯凯利于7月中旬返回伦敦科尔尼训练基地前完成签约。

That job is done. Arsenal take great pride in where Lewis-Skelly has come from. Now they can look forward to his future.

这项工作已经完成。阿森纳为刘易斯-斯凯利的出身感到无比自豪。现在，他们可以期待他的未来了。