Well, it might have been a competitive match, but Arsenal’s League Cup clash against Bolton Wanderers last night felt more like a training exercise.
Mikel Arteta might have made eight changes to the team that fought tooth and nail for a point at the Etihad on Sunday, but that made little difference to the result, as the Gunners ran out 5-1 winners against the League One side.
Unsurprisingly, given the scoreline, there were several stand-out performers for the North Londoners, although 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri and one of his fellow Hale Enders stood out.
Nwaneri's performance vs Bolton
There has been a lot of excitement around Nwaneri and his potential ever since he became the youngest Premier League player of all time two years ago, and while it’s far too early to be definitive, his first competitive start for Arsenal was a smashing success.
Yes, the opposition was a third-tier side, but you can only play who’s in front of you, and the Hale End gem looked entirely at home in the first team and may well have played himself into the side for Leicester City on Saturday.
The Enfield-born dynamo was seemingly everywhere he needed to be on the pitch, picking up a goal in both halves and had he been a bit more selfish in certain moments, he could have scored a hat-trick.
Football.london’s chief Arsenal writer, Kaya Kaynak, was equally impressed with the 5 foot 9 ace, awarding him a 9/10 on the night, writing that the inexperienced youngster ‘looked totally at home’ throughout.
Unsurprisingly, his statistics from the game are also incredibly impressive. In his 94 minutes on the pitch, the electrifying midfielder took 44 touches, maintained a passing accuracy of 93%, played two key passes, was accurate in 100% of his long balls, took two shots on target and even made two tackles to boot.
Minutes
94′
Touches
44
Goals
2
Passing Accuracy
26/28 (93%)
Key Passes
2
Long Balls (Accurate)
1 (1)
Shots on Target
2
Tackles
2
In all, it was practically the perfect debut for Nwaneri, and while he will deservedly get most of the headlines today, one of his fellow debutants was equally impressive.
Myle Lewis-Skelly's performance vs Bolton
Yes, alongside Nwaneri, another 17-year-old prospect made a seriously impressive full debut: Myles Lewis-Skelly.
The Hale End product caught the attention of the rest of the league on Sunday evening when he got under Erling Haaland’s skin for talking to David Raya behind the goal and came on for the closing minutes, but last night was his first competitive start for the club, and it was a special one.
Despite playing the majority of his junior games in a midfield role, Arteta opted to play the versatile prospect at left-back, although given the level of opposition and the flow of the game, he was able to get forward and come into the middle of the park without much trouble.
While his close control and general calmness were incredibly impressive for someone his age, the stand-out moment came in the 37th minute, when he played a sublime ball through almost the entire Bolton team, ultimately resulting in Nwaneri’s first goal, for which podcaster Will Balsam dubbed him a “different beast.”
Unsurprisingly, Kaynak was also very impressed with the Islington-born dynamo, awarding him an 8/10 on the night and writing that he looked ‘superb’ and that ‘more first team opportunities beckon.’
Minutes
62′
Touches
76
Fouls Won
4
Aerial Duels (Won)
2 (2)
Passing Accuracy
55/61 (90%
Long Balls (Completed)
3 (2)
Key Passes
1
Tackles
1
Like his fellow debutant, his statistics from the night back up this glowing appraisal. In his 62 minutes on the pitch, he took 76 touches, won four fouls, won 100% of his aerial duels, maintained a passing accuracy of 90%, completed two of three balls, played one key pass and made one tackle.
Ultimately, both Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly were superb last night, and while they are still so young, Arteta simply has to involve them more often from here on out; they are ready.
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