The 16-year-old midfielder - fresh from signing a four-year contract with Manchester City - has already played twice for England and is being courted by Australia for November’s FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil.
With grandfather Alex and dad Mark both former Socceroos, Arnold has been tracking the rookie for some time and invited him to be part of his first training camp when he took charge nearly a year ago.
City declared him unfit at the time and Robertson subsequently played for England U-16s, scoring in his second appearance.
The race to win the devotion of the kid who was born in Scotland but lived in Australia from the age of five to 12 has reached a critical stage with Robertson last month sitting down with England U-17s boss Kevin Betsy, who outlined a tantalising roadmap ahead with the Three Lions.
Arnold, who is heading to Europe on a six-week scouting mission ahead of the Socceroos' first 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Kuwait in September, is looking to paint the future green and gold for Robertson when the pair meet face-to-face early next month.
Back in action over the weekend for City’s Under-18s for the first time since injury struck last October, Robertson welcomes the interest from Arnold as he ponders which path to take.
Australia has qualified for the Under-17 World Cup in Brazil this October while England have not, giving Robertson even more to think about.
“Graham Arnold is coming over and I’m more than happy to sit down with him and share thoughts about my future,” Robertson told The World Game.
“At this moment in time I’m not 100 per cent sure yet (what to do) and I don’t think there’s a big rush just yet.
“It’s not something that’s on my mind every day but it’s something to be decided soon.
“You don’t want to commit yourself to something you’re not 100 per cent sure of.
“Obviously it would be great to play in the (Under-17) World Cup later this year but in the long run when I’m near the end of my career it’s maybe not something that I would recall too much about.
“That said, it would obviously be unbelievable to play in and a massive achievement that every every young kid would dream of.
“It’s a World Cup whether it’s with the 17s, the 20s or the senior team.”
Under existing FIFA eligibility rules, Robertson could represent the Joeys in Brazil and thereafter make one more switch before being tied to that nation of choice for good.
He is also currently eligible for Peru through his mother and birth country Scotland.
Joeys coach Trevor Morgan is desperate to stamp his boarding pass for Rio and Robertson, described by none other than Tim Cahill as “an exceptional talent”, has some thinking to do.
“You can have that one switch after playing for a national team but for me, I don’t want that to be the case,” he added.
“Whoever I play for I want to be totally behind that decision and I wouldn’t want to change my mind again.
“I want put my full focus and everything into the country I’m playing for (whoever it may be).”
England’s shimmering St George’s Park base is a 90-minute drive from Manchester and already a place of some familiarity for Robertson.
“I’ve enjoyed the taste I’ve had with England,” he added.
“The set-up at St Georges Park is unbelievable ... they do everything the same with the younger teams as they do with first team.
“The way they play (England’s Under-17s) they give you a lot of freedom which I really enjoy.”
Robertson has existing friendships with a number of the Joeys contingent, and grew up playing alongside skipper Ryan Teague in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.
His next step will be to join England for a tournament in Spain in September as he seeks further international exposure.
In the interim, Morgan’s Joeys will play England at St George’s Park in a friendly match - with Robertson in the unique position of possibly being offered starts by both nations.
FFA’s head of national teams Luke Casserly said: “We’ve emphasized to Mark and Alexander how much we want him to play for Australia.
“We understand he has options and because you can only change national associations once and then go back, I imagine their decision might be to stay where they are and play for England and perhaps make a final decision later when it gets towards the more senior age groups.
“If that’s the case I understand and respect that. We’ve made it clear we want Alexander to be part of the World Cup squad.
“We won’t give up hope on that - we’ve got games in England in September in that age group.
“At some point, of course, we have to get on and go with the players who are committed to us and prepare for the World Cup as best we can.”
Casserly said Arnold would be discussing with Robertson the pathway to the senior team and “what it means to play for the Socceroos”.
“I understand that playing for England is a really big thing but when you’re with Australia and are a part of the AFC it opens up the whole Asian market as well,” he said.
“Right now, Alexander can play for four countries but only one of them has qualified for the (Under-17) World Cup.”
