Photo: 20-year-old in Arsenal first-team training, hasn’t played a competitive game in over a year

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta called academy goalkeeper James Hillson up to first-team training on Thursday.

The 20-year-old is currently in the Gunners Under-23s setup, but hasn’t played a competitive game at any level for over a year.

Hillson’s last competitive appearance was back in September 2020, a 2-2 draw with Brighton’s U23s in the Premier League 2.

That was his only appearances throughout the whole of last season, though he did make the bench on a couple of occasions.

Hillson was in the matchday squad for the Europa League quarter-final second-leg win over Slavia Prague last April.

Arsenal academy expert Jeorge Bird shared a photo of the youngster in first-team training on Thursday.

He also speculated that Hillson could maybe go on loan in January, and was unable to confirm whether his lack of game time was due to injury.

That said, there is fierce competition for the gloves in the U23s setup, with Arthur Okonkwo and Karl Hein also in contention.

Arsenal are next in action on Monday 18 October when they host Crystal Palace at the Emirates.

The Gunners Under-23s, meanwhile, head to Liverpool U23s in the Premier League 2 on Saturday 16 October.