Arsenal 1-0 AC Milan: Bukayosaka scored early in the second half.
Bukayo Saka scored Arsenal’s first goal past Singapore’s Ak Milan, with Mikel Arteta handing out his debuts to two male students, giving minutes to all new signatures available.
Noni Maduke may not be part of the team that sealed off the move from Chelsea last week, but Viktor Gyoker is waiting to be confirmed to arrive from Sports Lisbon.
However, Arteta made his first appearance on Christian Norgaard from the start, with fellow new signatures Martin Zubimendi and Kepa Arrizabalaga coming out of the bench along with 15-year-old academy starlets Max Douman and Marri Salmon.
And Arsenal didn’t face single shots on target in a game where they could easily win with a bigger margin, even in matches at the Singapore Football Festival, regardless of the outcome in 90 minutes, and even if they still saw a penalty shootout happening. Milan Keepers Lorenzo Triani and Kepa locked out three-spot kicks as the shootout won 6-5 after nine attempts each, resulting in sudden death.
Here’s the key points to talk about when Gunners sharpen their tools ahead of their new campaign:
read more: Transfer News Live: Alexander Isaac Bomb, Arsenal Break Transfer Rules, Liverpool Star speaks at the exitread more: Liverpool handed out a one-off chance to disprove the biggest myth of the transfer market
Captain Saka
The English winger was handed an armband here, and looked like Arsenal’s most lively player in the first half as expected.
His rink was a play against Ben White and was undoubtedly well-known from the start for points that proved after a difficult time last season’s injury.
However, his deadlock breaker arrived eight minutes into the second season, following a dipped cross teasing from Jakub Kiwior on the opposite side. The finish was often touched by the fact that the left foot was lined up from the six-yard left foot.
Saka had the right summer holidays to bring him great benefits. Expect him to start the campaign quickly when some of the other clubs shake up summer fatigue.
Midfield Balance
The most notable thing about the Arteta setup and modifications was the depth of options available at the center of the pitch. This is a sign during a long campaign, as the backup options look very strong, even when the injury is a strike.
Christian Norgaard was put in from the start and appeared to play as a double pivot next to Declan Rice.
After that, Martin Zubimendi came towards Norgaard and moved a little more forward while Martin Odegard and Mikel Merino did what they would do when they controlled the second term.
Martinelli shooting boots
Well, they’re still on the shelf.
Arteta’s additional options, when added earlier, increase pressure on the winger, simply transforming promises, excitement and smooth build-up play into actual goals.
He was replaced by Leandro Trossard before he sporadically threatened the first half against Milan.
However, if Martinelli maintains a barren run that has many fans ripped his hair last season, he could soon find himself falling out of a boring order.
Adding a normal goal can be an unstoppable force. But so far there doesn’t seem to be any indication that it’s happening.
Douman’s debut
There’s already been much written about the 15-year-old Dowman, and the social media hype is already unfair considering how much development hasn’t come yet.
However, over the next two weeks he had the opportunity to bet on the claim that he would include when things were going on, which was a pretty great start.
When he jumped out of the bench with about 25 minutes left, he quickly got involved and ran down to the weaving run before laying off some tidy, confident passes.
There certainly were no signs of fear when he cut and took a harmlessly biased shot. Douman’s goal must be to thrive with more cameos on tours, hoping to consider cup fixtures later in the campaign.
Other bows
This was not a good day for those who are convinced that Arteta is reluctant to give young people a chance.
Douman was joined by another 15-year-old 15-year-old Marli Salmon who came at the same time for William Saliba, and 18-year-old Josh Nichols returned to the right as White’s replacement.
Certainly, it is unlikely that they will be part of the team that will be coming to the Premier League opener against Manchester United on August 17th, but these are valuable moments for the academy products and important staging posts in development.
And not all Premier League managers are willing to bring in younger players like Dowman and Salmon, regardless of the stage.
Join the new WhatsApp community and receive a daily amount of mirror football content. We also treat community members with special offers, promotions and advertising. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, you can read the privacy notice.
Sky Sports Discount Premier League and EFL Packages
£43
£35
Sky
Get the deal here
Sky has cut the prices of Essential TV and Sky Sports bundles ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering over 1,400 live matches in the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League matches next season, showing an even greater increase of up to 100.
