Arsenal teenager Ethan Nwaneri scores winner at Girona on full CL debut
Arsenal teenager Ethan Nwaneri scores winner at Girona on full CL debut
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Ethan Nwaneri scored on his full Champions League debut as Arsenal secured direct passage to the last 16 with a 2-1 win at Girona. The 17-year-old winger became the second-youngest English goalscorer in the competition after Jude Bellingham when he cracked in what turned out to be the winner late in the first half, a superb curling effort into the corner as Arsenal recovered from going a goal down.
Stand-in goalkeeper Neto, in for the injured David Raya, had a debut to forget, with the Brazilian on loan from Bournemouth badly at fault for allowing former Tottenham forward Arnaut Danjuma to give the home side the lead after 28 minutes. Girona had already been eliminated on their maiden Champions League campaign and squandered their lead soon after taking it, Thomas Partey fouled inside the box allowing Jorginho to level from the spot for Arsenal.
That set things up three minutes before half-time for Nwaneri to swing his left boot and score his sixth Arsenal goal, though the margin of victory could have been bigger had Raheem Sterling not missed a stoppage-time penalty. Girona took a surprise lead just before the half-hour mark. Captain Juanpe slipped the ball forwards for Danjuma to run onto. The winger had most of the Arsenal half to race into but his task was made considerably easier by the presence of Neto, stationed 10 yards outside of his box and in no position to beat Danjuma to the ball.
As the shot came in, the goalkeeper inexplicably dived full length in an attempt to reach it and was arguably fortunate that it sailed past his fingertips and in, thereby sparing him the ignominy of a certain red card for hand ball on his Arsenal debut.
