The kid’s all right! Gunner teen dazzles
Arsenal manager Emery raves about Smith Rowe as Londoners lose to Atletico Madrid in shoot-out
>> SINGAPORE: Arsenal boss Unai Emery said Emile Smith Rowe had earned his success after the 17-year-old announced himself with a stunning strike in Thursday’s penalties defeat to Atletico Madrid in Singapore.
Two days before his 18th birthday, Smith Rowe curled Arsenal’s equaliser from the edge of the box in a 1-1 draw, before Diego Simeone’s Atletico edged the shoot-out 3-1 in the International Champions Cup.
Smith Rowe was one of three teenagers in the starting line-up as Emery rested his World Cup players — including Mesut Oezil, who has been at the centre of a furore after he quit the German national team claiming racism.
Emery was delighted f or the Croydon-born midfielder, who joins a number of promising English players on the fringes of Premier League teams. But he stopped short of saying whether he would now get his chance in a competitive game.
“This goal Smith scored was very good for him, for the team but I think what’s important for us is that everyone, the young players and new players, were working very well today,” said the Spaniard.
“He grew up in the academy and we need to give young players the opportunity to stay with us, work every day and play matches like today,” Emery added.
“Then they are improving every day in the training sessions. I’m very happy with his work on the pitch but it’s not only today, it’s every day. He started today because his performance is good each day in training.”
Under International Champions Cup rules, the game went straight to penalties where substitute Atletico goalkeeper Antonio Adan starred, saving three before coolly scoring the winner himself.
Meanwhile, Oezil thanked Arsenal fans for their “love” after a torrid week following his racism allegations against Germany’s football body.
Oezil watched Arsenal’s penalties defeat to Atletico Madrid from the bench but he received one of the biggest cheers of the night when his image was flashed up on the big screen.
“Thanks to the Gunners in Singapore for showing so much love tonight,” the 29-year-old German midfielder tweeted, with a picture of him waving to the crowd.
Oezil sent shockwaves through German football when he quit the national team on Sunday, complaining of “racism and disrespect”.
German football chief Reinhard Grindel rejected the racism charge but admitted he should have defended Oezil after the playmaker was abused for having a photograph taken with Turkey’s strongman president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Oezil, who was born i n Germany to Turkish-origin parents and lifted the World Cup in 2014, also felt he was unfairly singled out for their shock group-stage exit at this year’s tournament.
Aresnal manager Emery and players have rallied round Oezil on their pre-season tour, while the hashtags #StandWithOzil and #SayNoToRacism have been popular on social media.
“Of course everybody supports Mesut. We’re with him, we’re trying to help him,” Arsenal midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan said.
“Everyone knows that Arsenal is a team with a lot of foreign players and foreign employees. It doesn’t matter which country you represent, it’s like family and we support each other.”