Ethan Nwaneri made his case for an opportunity for Arsenal against PSV Eindhoven with a five-goal display in the FA Youth Cup on Saturday.

The Arsenal u18s took on Crewe Alexandra in the third round of the FA Youth Cup on Saturday, and though the match finished with a very comfortable scoreline for the Gunners, it didn’t start out that way.

A mistake by Arsenal’s Noah Cooper gifted Crewe the opening goal in the first half, and they were still leading at the break.

Jack Wilshere’s side were last season’s runners-up in the cup, but they were on the verge of a shock elimination at the first hurdle this time around.

Step up Ethan Nwaneri. The youth midfielder was playing at centre-forward on this occasion, and within three minutes of the second half kicking off, he brought Arsenal level.

That first Arsenal goal came with an element of fortune, as Nwaneri drove forwards before seeing his shot deflected into the net, leaving the goalkeeper stranded.

A Nwaneri shot then won Arsenal a corner, from which Luis Brown headed home for 2-1.

The Nwaneri show was well under way, and if there was a bit of luck about his first goal, his second finish curled into the top corner was all skill.

Nwaneri’s next goal was perhaps even better, as he flicked the ball up with his first touch, drawing the goalkeeper in before touching it past him for his hat-trick.

But the 16-year-old wasn’t done there, tapping home a fourth goal from close range after excellent work by Michal Rosiak and Kamarni Ryan to find him.

A Nwaneri long ball then got another move going, and Myles Lewis-Skelly breezed past a challenge that would’ve floored most players before cutting the ball back for Nwaneri to score his fifth of the night.

Omari Benjamin then made sure there was at least one goal without Nwaneri’s seal on it, cleverly adjusting his body to finish a loose ball in the box for 7-1, which was how it finished.

You can watch the highlights here.

Arsenal will now progress to the fourth round, in which they’ll face Fleetwood Town or Liverpool away from home, depending on the result of that tie.

As for Nwaneri, he could hardly have done more to ensure he’s in Mikel Arteta’s squad again for the PSV Eindhoven clash on Tuesday.

Nwaneri made the bench against RC Lens, and he’ll surely be on it again in the Netherlands in midweek. Given Arsenal have already won the group, a debut at some point shouldn’t be out of the question.

Arsenal lineup vs Crewe Alexandra

Cooper, Nichols, Kacurri, Heaven, Brown, Rosiak, Lewis-Skelly, Dudziak, Ferdinand, Kamara, Nwaneri

Substitutes

Benjamin (for Dudziak, 46), Ryan (for Ferdinand, 72), Kabia (for Kamara, 72), Rojas, Sweet, Small, Copley

What’s next?

The u18s will face Fleetwood Town or Liverpool away from home in the FA Youth Cup fourth round. Before that, they’ll be in action against Fulham in the u18 Premier League next Saturday, December 16th at 11:00 GMT.

Any of the u21s who had dropped down to the u18s for the Youth Cup (like Nwaneri) will next be in action away to Sunderland in the Premier League the following Monday, December 18th at 19:00 GMT.

The youngsters will then go on their winter break, unless any of them are held back by Arteta for potential first-team duty.