The Arsenal u21s got off to a winning start in the EFL Trophy with a comeback victory over Newport County on Tuesday night.
The Arsenal u21s played their first EFL Trophy group stage match on Tuesday, travelling away to Newport County under new manager David Horseman.
There were doubts around a number of players being involved, given Arsenal’s first team League Cup match against Port Vale the following day. But whilst Max Dowman did miss out for that reason, Andre Harriman-Annous, Charles Sagoe Jr., Josh Nichols, Marli Salmon, and Tommy Setford all started.
In the end it was a relatively strong Arsenal u21 side, so it would have been disappointing to new boss Horseman that the team went 1-0 down within seconds.
Less than two minutes into the match, Ben Lloyd capitalised on a sleepy Arsenal start to give Newport the lead. But the young Gunners responded very well.
Harriman-Annous almost pulled Arsenal level in the first half, with Newport goalkeeper Jordan Wright clawing his shot off the line at the second attempt.
Harriman-Annous then won a penalty early in the second half after a trip by Jaden Warner, but his spot-kick was well saved.
Undeterred by the setback, Harriman-Annous then won another penalty after an even more blatant foul by Habeeb Ogunneye. This time around, the Arsenal striker found the corner for 1-1.
Substitute Demiane Agustien almost found the winning goal with a whipped shot from the edge of the penalty area. The Gunners eventually got that winner through Sagoe Jr.’s poked finish following an 89th-minute set-piece for 2-1.
“I think we totally dominated the game and probably should have scored a couple more, so really proud of the boys tonight,” new boss Horseman said afterwards.
“I thought we showed real quality and effort but also we solved the problems and had a bit of character when it was a little bit difficult at the start, it’s just a testament to the work that’s gone on before this game.”
Arsenal u21 lineup vs Newport County
Setford, Nichols, Salmon, Clarke, Washington, Ibrahim, Copley, Dudziak, Ferdinand, Harriman-Annous, Sagoe Jr.
Substitutes
Agustien (for Dudziak, 64), Kamara (for Ferdinand, 64), Hamill (for Nichols, 90+2), Sweet (for Harriman-Annous, 90+4), Mitchell, Murisa, Bailey-Joseph
What’s next?
The Arsenal u21s face Derby County away from home in the Premier League 2 on Friday, September 26th at 19:00 BST.
As a reminder, David Horseman only takes charge of the u21s for the EFL Trophy, as well as leading the u19s in the UEFA Youth League. So it will be Max Porter back in charge for Friday’s u21 league game.