Saka and Jesus moment, what Arteta did to Nwaneri - Three things spotted during Arsenal v Bolton
Arsenal eased through to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup as they completed a free-scoring victory against Bolton. A chance for some youth stars to shine and summer signings to star, Mikel Arteta will have enjoyed this less stressful Gunners clash.
Declan Rice gave the Gunners the lead with a great strike, capitalising on some loose Bolton possession in their own defensive third from outside the box. Ethan Nwaneri then got the goal that everyone wanted, tapping in to complete Raheem Sterling’s first assist of his Arsenal career - further goals from Nwaneri, Sterling and Havertz completed the comfortable rainy night in north London.
While the game was indeed televised, often things can be easily missed even with the benefit of the cameras. Thankfully, football.london was on hand to provide a glimpse of what the pictures missed at the Emirates Stadium from inside the ground.
Nwaneri treatment
Before the game, every Arsenal fan was hoping and praying that not only that Nwaneri would start, because that felt something of a formality, but that he could get on the scoresheet. Martin Odegaard’s absence has certainly been a blow and left many trying to piece together potential alternatives to the skipper and the better the teenager does, the more he has a genuine chance of getting that shot.
When the goal hit the back of the net, the love from his fellow players on the field was evident for all to see. However, it was the break after the goal that allowed Nwaneri to be congratulated by several members of the coaching staff - including Mikel Arteta - in a very nice moment.
Careful Mikel
It was a relatively uneventful opening to the game. Arsenal were finding it tricky to break down the League One side who were happy to defend deep and hit on the counter, which they did to great effect in the second half with the goal scored by Aaron Collins.
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READ MORE: Arsenal vs Bolton highlights
However as a loose ball came cannoning out toward the West Stand and in front of the Arsenal dugout, Mikel Arteta was keen to get play restarted. He jogged down the slight decline at the side of the pitch toward the ball and for a moment nearly lost his footing… it would have been a very clippable moment but like the deft midfielder he was, he retained his balance and collected the ball.
Saka’s unorthodox Jesus assist
Another example of amusement on a chilly Wednesday evening, one thing you do not want to be doing is running around a grassy field without your shoes on. However, that is exactly what Gabriel Jesus was subjected too but entirely out of his control.
After engaging in a tough challenge that saw a Bolton defender land a stamp on his foot, it caused the Brazilian’s boot to fly off. Jesus then continued to play for a good minute with just one boot on, slipping once while in possession to the amused cheers of the crowd.
Having found himself now on a completely different side of the field, he required the assistance of his teammate Saka to locate his boot and send it back his way with a gratefully received throw. It stopped many yards short of the forward… and thankfully the winger will not be judged on his throwing skills.