Arsenal’s u23s returned to winning ways with a 3-0 victory over West Ham, after a number of the more experienced options returned to the line up.
The young Guns had lost to Swansea earlier in the week without many of their regulars who had been drafted into the first team ahead of the Europa League tie, but for this match those players returned, and the team looked much better as a result.
Reiss Nelson missed out after his Europa League involvement, and rumours of illness ahead of the Köln match. But Eddie Nketiah, Joe Willock, Matt Macey and Ben Sheaf, who were all on the bench in Germany, returned to the starting eleven to face West Ham.
The Gunners started impressively, and it only took five minutes for Vlad Dragomir to open the scoring, with a looping header from a free-kick.
It's only taken five minutes for #AFCU23 to open the scoring…
Vlad Dragomir heads past Nathan Trott to give us the lead pic.twitter.com/qZwwDu4a1y
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) November 24, 2017
Nketiah was then brought down for a penalty, but saw his effort saved by the keeper.
Willock and Nketiah were again denied, before Dragomir added his second of the match in the 34th minute.
Willock played him in with a fantastic long pass, and Vlad did the rest. The Romanian is having an impressive campaign, and now has four goals and an assist from eight Premier League 2 matches.
https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/934145555550306305
Nketiah went close again before the end of the first half, and it seemed it just wasn’t going to be the 18-year-old’s day. However, despite West Ham making a bit of a resurgence in the second half, Eddie finally got his goal in the 84th minute, putting the game to bed.
Well played, lads. It finishes 3-0 to #AFCU23, with @EddieNketiah9 scoring our third pic.twitter.com/FZJGU6H2ZH
— Arsenal FC (@Arsenal) November 24, 2017
Line up: Macey; Pleguezuelo, Medley, Sheaf; Osei-Tutu, Dasilva, Willock, T. Bola; Dragomir, Smith Rowe; Nketiah.
Subs: Keto, Gilmour, Eyoma, Amaechi.