By Randy Osae

Earlier this week, Arsene Wenger confessed that a mention of his number-twelve’s name always puts a mild smile on his face. Carlos Vela always looks cheery too – even when he is bothered. Few players strive into that category of having the “always smiling” faces. Ronaldhino is the most notable. Even when they are fouled or not, they show sportsmanship.

It’s as if they don’t even have the talent to be a little hot-headed, but for Vela it’s natural. The hard working Mexican youngster possesses what several who reached the heights lack – personality and composure whether in front of goal or not.

At the time when Wenger paid Chivas £2.5million for an ambitious buy, he was only a raw 16 year-old footballer whose career had just blistered by well taken chances at the Fifa U-17 World Cup.
Tuesday night was a realization of why it pays to wait for a phenomenon. Vela is not the youngest Arsenal player to score a hat trick, John Radford did so at 17 years and 315 days of age. So it’s not the marks in the history books that makes Vela’s incredible treble a fussy topic.

The fact is; none of those strikes were tap-ins. Neither were any of them already-made chances my the assists. In fact, Carlitto’s finishes, thunderous efforts, pin-point strikes, whatever you call them were goals worth being match winners. His quick announcement in north London is what amazes, but then on, too much hype is sometimes a curse. The complimentary talks can end here.

But for now, Vela has expressed his gratefulness to the incentive of his career’s new dawn. The professor takes the praises from his school boy.

Carlos Vela went on to say this after razing Sheffield United’s defence.

“The reputation of Arsene Wenger was the main thing that brought me here to Arsenal. He is very well known for this,” said Vela.

“He has given me a lot of advice, but mainly it’s been to keep working hard and to take the opportunities when they come and when they come you have to take them. That’s the advice that he has given me.

“We are very close as a group of players. We have a strong friendship – it’s almost like we are a family. You can see that from the way in which the team is playing.

“The manager has a great reputation for working with young players and that was shown against Sheffield United. He puts faith in young people and it’s great that the oldest player was the keeper at 23-years-old.

For those who will to just shower plaudits after a good deed and swiftly bash on the wake of the bad, Vela has warned against the shallow judges – don’t expect him to steal the show every night. And when he doesn’t for a while, don’t forecast his future. Only hard work will permit.

“All of the players looked as if they have a great future but you never know. Some will make it but we know that others won’t.

“But you have to work hard as a player to get into the team and to then help the team to win the championship.”

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