Lisa made the decision to become Ayden’s agent when he was 16 because no one else convinced her they could see his potential. She was never in any doubt.
“This is a business but in order for the business to be successful you have to understand what – [turning to Ayden] I know you’re my son – but what your product is,” she says. “I didn’t feel anybody understood him and believed in him.”
When it came to agreeing terms with United, Lisa was clear Ayden didn’t want to spend more time in the academy. As far as they were concerned, he had outgrown it and that’s why he was leaving Arsenal.
Jason Wilcox, United’s sporting director, agreed the 18-year-old was ready. Lisa and the lawyers she describes as “Ayden’s co-agents”, Andy Squires May and Karim Bouzidi from Clintons law firm, carried out the negotiations. Nine days after his visit, Ayden was announced.
As well as the magic of Old Trafford, it was the opportunities he could see at United that convinced Ayden of the move. “I just saw myself in the squad,” he says, “because there’s not much in our way, so I just felt like I could establish myself better than at other clubs.”
Lisandro Martinez was his competition at United for that left-sided centre-back spot in Ruben Amorim’s back three and, in the same game Ayden was introduced to Old Trafford with fellow new-signing Patrick Dorgu, the Argentine suffered a season-ending injury.
This opened the door for Ayden earlier than even he anticipated. “I was really surprised,” he says, when asked about making his Premier League debut against Arsenal. “I knew when the opportunity came I could take it, and I feel like I’ve been doing it so far.”
His situation at Arsenal could not have been more different. Already behind Gabriel and Jakub Kiwior in the pecking order at left-centre-back, Riccardo Calafiori was then signed for £42m after Ayden had been given minutes on the club’s US tour in pre-season.
Ayden was in Arsenal’s first-team squad photo in September, but the next few months showed he wasn’t really in the picture. His only appearance was off the bench for the final 10 minutes of a 3-0 win over Preston in the Carabao Cup last-16.
“[Leaving Arsenal] was a bittersweet moment because they had been so good with him,” says Lisa. “I felt like he had a good relationship with Mikel Arteta and the first team. But the pathway wasn’t there for him. He was ready for that next step.”
Being brought on against Arsenal so soon after signing for United was a clear indication that Ayden had made the right move for his career. The response of his former team-mates at the full-time whistle demonstrated that they understood that too.
“They showed [me] a lot of love after the game,” says Ayden, who was inundated with hugs and handshakes from the players he had trained with for the past two years.
Arsenal had offered Ayden a new contract but could see what was unfolding for him. “They agreed Ayden had to move on for his development,” says Lisa. “It was our decision which club we went to, and Ayden made it for everyone.”
