Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw by Nurnberg in their opening game of preseason, despite an early goal from Bukayo Saka in Germany on Thursday.
Saka, who scored 14 goals and added 11 assists as Arsenal finished second in the Premier League last season, got his side’s preparations for the new season off to a perfect start when converting an assist from Ben White after just seven minutes.
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United States striker Folarin Balogun almost doubled Arsenal’s lead shortly after coming off the substitutes’ bench but was denied by the post. Almost immediately the home side made the most of their reprieve, capitalising on a mishap in the Arsenal defence that saw Jorginho unwittingly put the ball into own net from long range.
“There are a lot of positive things that we can take, especially the way we played in the first half — the tempo, the composure, the commitment that we showed,” Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta told the club’s website.
“We had some big chances to score more goals at the end, and mistakes are a part of football because they haven’t given much to be fair, but it was great to see our young players playing as well and doing really well in an environment that is challenging. READ MORE
