Harriman-Annous makes UCL debut in Arsenal's win over Slavia, Nwaneri and Moses also feature

Quad-national forward Andre Harriman-Annous made his UEFA Champions League debut on Tuesday as Arsenal extended their impressive run of form with a 3-0 victory over Slavia Prague.

The England U18 international, who is also eligible to represent Nigeria, Ghana and Lebanon, came off the bench in the 81st minute to replace Declan Rice, with the result already beyond doubt.

There had been a strong indication ahead of kickoff that the 17-year-old would be involved, as he was absent from the U19 squad that faced Slavia in the UEFA Youth League earlier in the day.

Just six days after making his senior debut in the Carabao Cup against Brighton & Hove Albion, the Hale End Academy graduate took another step forward in his development with a first Champions League appearance.

Harriman-Annous was not the only Super Eagles-eligible player on show at the Fortuna Arena, as Ethan Nwaneri and David Moses both started,  the former for Arsenal and the latter for Slavia.

The visitors maintained their perfect record in the league phase of the competition, with stand-in captain Bukayo Saka opening the scoring from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute.

With several forwards unavailable through injury, Mikel Merino led the line superbly, netting twice in the second half — first immediately after the restart and again midway through the half — to seal a comfortable win for Mikel Arteta's men.

There was disappointment for Moses, who endured a difficult evening and was forced off in the 74th minute after picking up an injury.

It was also a historic night for Arsenal midfielder Max Dowman, who became the youngest player ever to feature in the UEFA Champions League, aged 15 years and 308 days.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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