Europa League: Arsenal Make It Eight Wins In A Row As New-Boys Fire Gunners To Victory Over Qarabag (Photos & Video)

Alan Duffy

4th, October 2018

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Arsenal notched their eighth consecutive victory in all competitions after a satisfactory 3-0 win over Qarabag in Azerbaijan.

Unai Emery fielded a mix-and-match XI for the Europa League game, with 18-year-old Emile Smith-Rowe handed his first start for the Gunners.

The visitors got off to a great start, with Sokratis Papastathopoulos scoring his first goal for Arsenal, diverting in a Nacho Monreal header.

That goal was the first scored by an Arsenal player never to play under Arsene Wenger since Dutch winger Glenn Helder in January 1996.

Starting with a back three, Arsenal failed to convince in the first-half, with Bernd Leno forced to thwart the hosts on a number of occasions.

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In the second-half, Emery switched to a back four, although Leno would be called upon again before the end.

On 53 minutes, the impressive Smith-Rowe marked his full debut with a goal, coolly slotting home after a quick break.

On 79 minutes, another teen sensation, Matteo Guendouzi would become the third player to score their first goal for the Gunners on the night, with the Frenchman finishing off a fine team move with a lovely strike.

The game would end 3-0 to Arsenal, with their eight-game winning streak their best run since 2015.

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The north Londoners now top Group E with maximum points from their first two games, with an Emery-inspired feel-good factor percolating throughout the club.