Reiss Nelson earned a surprise start for Arsenal against Liverpool in the midweek clash between the clubs.
The forward started while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was rested as Mikel Arteta gambled to get all three points in the game.
Nelson repaid the faith shown in him by Mikel Arteta when he scored a goal and pressed Virgil van Dijk for Arsenal’s second goal.
He was delighted to have scored against the Reds, and after the game, he spoke of his delight and claimed that he had been dreaming about scoring against such a goal against an illustrious opponent all his life.
Nelson said as quoted by the BBC: “It’s a big achievement for us, we’ve been working hard on the training pitch so getting a win against the leaders is big.
“You dream as a little boy to score against the big boys – so I’m happy with the results and with my goal. When I get home I’ll celebrate with my family. I am delighted with the goal and the lads were excellent tonight.”
Nelson is one of several players in the current Arsenal side that has come through the club’s academy.
Mikel Arteta has shown that he would trust a player to start if that player shows that he has the right quality.
Arsenal’s next game is the FA Cup semi-final match against Manchester City, and Nelson would no doubt hope that Arteta will trust him once again to play a part in the game.
He was vastly superior than Pepe and deserves to start on the right wing against Man City.
Was so happy for Reiss! His ‘cool as you like’ goal and loved his celebration -which was almost as cool!
I hope that’s the first of many!
Good for him. Your first EPL goal is a winner against the champions. Doesn’t get much better.