NextGen Series Last 16
Inter Milan 0 Arsenal 1 (Yennaris)
A stunning second-half strike from Nico Yennaris ensured Arsenal’s progression to the Quarter-Finals of the NextGen Series and, in so doing, knocked out holders Inter Milan on a torturous pitch in Italy.
Yennaris provided the only real moment of quality in a match in which clear-cut opportunities were very difficult to come by, owing largely to the poor conditions of a pitch which seemed submerged in water. Nonetheless, that will make victory all the sweeter for the young Gunners, whose reward is a home tie against CSKA Moscow and a genuine chance of winning this competition at the first attempt.
There were few surprises in Terry Burton’s team selection, apart from, perhaps, the decision to start Isaac Hayden over the older Jordan Wynter in midfield alongside Yennaris. This was an Arsenal side shorn of two of its most creative assets in the absence of injured duo Thomas Eisfeld and Jon Toral, but Burton could still call upon the likes of Serge Gnabry, Zak Ansah and Chuba Akpom against a strong Inter outfit.
Iliev
Bellerin-Monteiro-Hajrovic-Angha
Yennaris-Hayden
Gnabry-Olsson-Ansah
Akpom
subs: Vickers, Ormonde-Ottewill, Mugabo, Jebb, Iwobi, Wynter, Lipman.
The first ten minutes of proceedings could be classified as something of a non-event as both sides struggled to adapt to the treacherous conditions, and it was not until midway through the first half that either side came close, with Lorenzo Tassi squandering an opportunity before Isaac Donkor was fortunate not to turn the ball into his own net at the other end.
Sead Hajrovic and Hector Bellerin both picked up yellow cards for rash challenges as the half wore on but, other than a half-hearted penalty appeal from Inter, the remainder of the first 45 minutes rather fizzled out.
Yennaris finally provided a moment of inspiration in a game which was desperately lacking in moments of star quality, with the midfielder taking a touch to steady himself before rifling home an unstoppable effort from distance to score what proved to be the only goal of the game.
Wynter then replaced Hajrovic as Arsenal looked to hold on for a commendable victory and, despite both Yennaris and goalkeeper Deyan Iliev receiving yellow cards, they managed to do so, with Austin Lipman introduced in place of Serge Gnabry late on to help run the clock down even further.
It was an incredibly difficult tie in its own right even before the conditions, which rendered the game almost unplayable at times, are taken into account, and the club will take great pride from the fact that they managed to negotiate this most difficult of obstacles.
Earlier in the campaign, when they were struggling to grind out results in the group stage against sides with considerably less quality than Inter, the notion of Arsenal winning this competition seemed rather fanciful. Now, should they dispatch of CSKA Moscow, they will be on the verge of a stunning triumph.
Well done to the young Gunners beating Inter milan today !
At least who have kids who know what it mean to compete.
Great:)))
Best news of the week
Off the topic though, i was reading the Austin Lipman’s academy article in the Arsenal magazine and he said some things that made me wonder about him. The first thing he said that didn’t make any sense was that the best player he played with was Fabregas. Now Lipman has only just became a scholar so when exactly did he get a chance to even train with Cesc let alone play with. Another thing he said that sounded like a stupid lie was when he said he scored from the halfway line at Highbury. Now Highbury closed in 2006 which would have made Austin no older than 10 years old when he supposedly did this wonderous thing. If there is any truth in this doesn’t anyone think we would have heard about a 10 year old scoring from the halfway line at Highbury. What planet is this kid on because it isnt Earth
@Dann, I played cub football at the old Wembley, and many times on the indoor pitches at Highbury, and I was crap. So it’s plausable that either a young acadamy or young gunner could have played on the highbury pitch with youth team players, or trained with first teamers on special days.
Lipman scored from the halfway at the JVC centre at Highbury at U9s level. The keeper duffed a goal kick, and he lobbed him on the half volley. Before Fabregas left Arsenal, he was training with the reserves, something which Lipman also got the opportunity to do at the same time. Hope that clears that up for you.
That was a really impressive team win in totally unplayable conditions. Massive congrats
Really like to see Yennaris promoted to the first team.
Dann you shouldn’t come on a forum and call someone a liar unless you know the facts. Read UcbK1′s comments. I think you owe Lipman an apology, as you could not be more wrong about the young professional ( not scholar!)
Why should i apologise im entitled to my opinion
idiot, youth teams used to play at highbury
Because Dann, you maligned someone and you were wrong.
your opinion was based on your owned stupid logic. You don’t have to apologies really but one thing is for sure. You are stupid as hell.
Dann, you can only accuse if you know facts!
Well done Arsenal. Difficult game, but grinding out a win – that’s more like it.
Great win, Young Guns!
One player I’ve rated quite highly but doesn’t seem to get much hype: Elton Monteiro. I’ve watched 5/7 of the NextGen games and I’ve liked Monteiro in them all. I know at u18 level he looked shaky at times, but he’s done well in NextGen for me. I wonder how he’s rated by Arsenal?