Eddie Nketiah made his first ever appearance for the Arsenal under-21’s in their 1-0 loss to Blackburn Rover under-21’s at Leigh Sports Village on Friday afternoon.
The Arsenal XI was much rotated ahead of the FA Youth Cup second leg against Manchester City on Monday but still had the likes of Daniel Crowley, Serge Gnabry and Donyell Malen to compete with.
YouTube: Eddie Nketiah
It was Sam Lavelle who put the home side 1-0 up however, after the 19-year-old centre back found himself with space after escaping his marker just before half-time and headed beyond the hapless Ryan Huddart – who recently signed a new contract with the club.
While the visitors had a number of chances, the only real positive of the night comes in the form Nketiah, who impressed with the under-18’s after signing his full scholarship last summer and was brought on for the final 20 minutes of the disappointing loss.
The game meant that Arsenal lost two games in a row for the first time in the Second Division season, leaving them five points adrift of Derby County but with two games in hand over their opponents.
Next up for the under-21’s is Newcastle United at the Emirates Stadium next Friday evening.
