Arsenal defender Abu Agogo was thrilled to be handed a pro deal by academy chief Liam Brady last month.

Agogo told arsenal.com: "You can definitely say that Liam took me by surprise the other week, and that goes for Rene Steer and Dunny (James Dunne) too. I was sitting in the changing rooms and he came in saying he wanted to have a word with me and the other two lads in his office. We were all confused and wondering if there was a problem. When I went in to Liam's office he said something like, 'congratulations, we want to offer you a professional contract'.

"To say I was surprised is an understatement" smiles Abu. "I got a two year professional contract and so did the other two lads.

"We were all so pleased and so relieved. We were all expecting to wait until next year for a decision, but now that we know, that's something we don't have to worry about. I didn't have any major doubts, but however well you feel you are playing and training, you can not be sure of getting a contract until it is actually given and so there is always a bit of uncertainty. But that's gone now."