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The broken clock tattoo on Emile Smith Rowe’s arm is a Nancy Drew reference

The broken clock tattoo on Emile Smith Rowe’s arm is a Nancy Drew reference

When football stars choose to get inked, it usually goes one of two ways. 

Due to their popularity, every new tattoo is closely inspected and judged by their fans, which leads to it being appreciated or trolled on a large scale. 

A prime example would be Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s fierce back tattoo, which much like the player, holds an iconic status. 

On the other end, is Kai Havertz’s Batman body art, which was received with trolling from fans and teammates alike.

Such was the case for Arsenal Youngster Emile Smith Rowe, who recently got shared pictures of his brand new tattoo. Fans quickly spotted a peculiar detail on the ink, and instantly jumped on ESR’s case. 

As seen in these images, the tattoo is situated on the 21-year-old’s upper left arm. It showcases a unique mesh, as a cracked clock is placed atop a lion’s head. Instead of numbers, roman numerals can be seen on the clock. 

The mistakes were spotted on the clock, as instead of 12, the clock has 13 numbers. Additionally, the number 4 is depicted as ‘IIII’,  rather than the more recognized ‘IV’. 

These details were enough for fans online to latch onto, and plenty of jokes were made at the youngster’s expense. 

However, an intriguing bit of information emerged later, in the form of the source of the clock’s design.

The tattoo evidently draws inspiration from the cover of the video game ‘Nancy Drew-Secret of the Old Clock’. The clock is an exact one-for-one match, featuring identical cracks and needles. 

Fortunately, this meant that the intricate work would not go to waste, as the clock’s details appear to be intentional.