Serge Gnabry played for Arsenal’s under-21s on Tuesday evening, and put on a real show.
Last year Serge Gnabry was busy impressing for Arsenal’s under-21 side and NextGen team, even earning his first ever call-ups to the first team.
This year the winger’s rapid progression has seen him take advantage of an injury to Theo Walcott and establish himself as a key squad player for Arsene Wenger.
Introduced as a late substitute at Old Trafford, he injected pace and a real threat to the Gunners’ attack, and has a Premier League goal against Swansea to his name.
He has also attracted attention in his homeland, where he has three goals in five games for Germany’s under-19 side.
Gnabry is clearly a player going places, but with the Germany under-19s without a game this week, the decision was made to bring him back into the Arsenal under-21 side for a game against a talented Aston Villa.
It was an inspired choice, with the winger showing he is now simply too good for this level alone, and perfectly deserving of a first team spot.
The 18-year-old inspired an amazing first half display which saw the Gunners race into a 4-0 lead by half-time.
Gnabry scored one, and provided two assists, crossing for a Jon Toral goal, and delivering a corner from which Emmanuel Frimpong headed home.
He played the full 90 minutes in the match, which ended 4-2 as Arsenal took their foot off the gas in the second half, using it to issue a timely reminder as to his talent.
It’s certainly clear that when Theo Walcott returns to action for the first team, he may not have it all his own way.
image: © NextGen
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