ARSENAL starlet Kieran Gibbs today revealed how Arsene Wenger had given his personal seal of approval to his loan move to Norwich.

Gibbs joined the Canaries on transfer deadline day, signing a loan deal keeping him at Carrow Road until April 28.

The 18-year-old was the only one of the Gunners young flock that boss Wenger was willing to release on loan, with the Premier League club short on numbers due to injury and the African Cup of Nations.

Therefore, the queue for Gibbs' services was a long one, with a number of City's Championship rivals eager to add the England U19 international to their squads.

But the Canaries won the race for Gibbs. And while manager Glenn Roeder's close relationship with Wenger undoubtedly played a part, so did the Canaries' reputation for taking care of young players.

"I spoke to the chief scout and my academy director and they said that he (Wenger) wanted me to go out on loan to somewhere that's a good stable club, somewhere where they like to try and play football, so he thought Norwich would be a good place to come and get that experience," said Gibbs, speaking to CanariesWorld.

"I only found I was coming last night and I looked them up on the website and saw that they're just coming out of the relegation zone and starting to get back to playing well."

Gibbs' loan should benefit both City and Arsenal. The teenager has had few chances to get near Wenger's star-studded first team so far, with the Carling Cup offering him one start and one substitute appearance this season.

He first caught the eye in the under 18s, where he scored eight times in 23 appearances last season and was propelled into the limelight again when he scored the only goal in the first leg of the FA Youth Cup semi-final against Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium in front of more than 38,000 fans.

So far, that's been Gibbs' only experience of the big time, and he hoped a move to the Championship would help him develop as a player, both physically and mentally.

"I haven't had that experience," said Gibbs I've had one or two games this season but I think it should be interesting.

"This is the nitty-gritty part; the part which should toughen me up mentally and physically as well, so I think it should be good.

"Just hopefully someone who can bring a change to the game. Not just when we've got the ball, but when we haven't got the ball - I can work hard and help the team win."

Roeder was clearly pleased to have a player of Gibbs' calibre in his squad.

"The young lad from Arsenal is highly technical and highly talented," he said. "One of the players that Arsene rates extremely highly and who he expects to have an Arsenal career, and that'll do for me."

TOP GUNNER: Gibbs in action for Arsenal

At 18, Gibbs is still in the infancy of his career. He arrives at Carrow Road along with three other players still cutting their teeth in professional football. Reading pair Alex Pearce and James Henry have had few chances in the first team under Steve Coppell, while Middlesbrough defender Matthew Bates has just recovered from a cruciate knee ligament injury.

And while Roeder was confident the likes of senior players such as Dion Dublin, Darren Huckerby and Gary Doherty would help the new arrivals on the pitch if needed, he firmly believed they already had the mental make-up to cope with the rigours of the Championship.

"Yes, but I also think the group of young players I've got in can look after themselves," he said. "I don't think they'll need a nanny - or a doc.

"They're mentally tough boys. I like Steve Coppell - I don't go out to dinner with him - but I like him as a manager, the way he does things and the type of player he has at his club.

"If they're not highly motivated and mentally tough they don't normally stay at Reading too long. I was quite delighted to take these two boys that we've got from Reading. The recommendations are very strong and I'm sure the two will be a big asset for us, like the others. The lad from Middlesbrough is an incredibly tough person. When he tackles you know you've been tackled."

City winger Luke Chadwick certainly knew he'd been tackled when he clashed with Bates last season. The Middlesbrough man was on loan at Ipswich when City lost 3-1 at Portman Road under Peter Grant.

And while the pain of the defeat was bad enough, Chadwick suffered worst of all, colliding with an advertising hoarding after being sent off the pitch by a robust Bates' challenge.

The tackle itself was perfectly legal, with poor fortune the real reason for Chadwick picking up a knee injury on his Norwich debut which would wreck his season.

But Bates admitted he'd already been on the end of some light-hearted banter about that moment.

NEW FACE: Bates arrives at Colney for training

"It's been brought up a little bit since I've been down here," said Bates, who himself suffered knee ligament damage in his next game for Town which would put him on the sidelines all season.

"I don't think it'll be a problem. I think it was a bit unlucky that he got injured, and I actually got injured in the game after that. So that's football. He's a professional and I'm sure he'll get on with it."

And Roeder believed Bates would have no trouble slipping straight back into action, despite being out for so long with injury.

"He's had a couple of 90 minutes and has enough experience to pick up the threads of playing the game again very quickly," said Roeder. "Again he comes with a big recommendation from his manager and from Steve McClaren as well.

"Having met him my first impressions were very good. He came in training yesterday when he didn't have to. He jumped in the car to make sure he was down on Wednesday night to get down here training even though we had a day off. He was chomping at the bit.

"We've not had cover at right back. Jon Otsemobor had the position to himself whether he played well or not, but he knows now he's got a fight on his hand with Matthew Bates, who can also play as a central defender."

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See the first interviews with City's new arrivals on Friday's CanariesWorld. Includes a chat with boss Glenn Roeder and Darren Huckerby on his City future. Click here for details.