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.

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.

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

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. It’s a sign of his rapid progression that securing a new contract for the 18-year-old became a matter of urgency for Arsenal.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

How do you handle the pressure and expectation? That is among the questions discussed at a workshop for parents of academy players

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).

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.

Most important of all to Berta’s success at his new club will be his chemistry with Arteta. Here’s how and why Arsenal appointed the Italian

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.

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

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).

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.

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.

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.

“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.

“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.”

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.

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.

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.

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

• A Tell Media report / Adapted from The Athletic