Emile Smith Rowe received consolation from his Arsenal teammate Oleksandr Zinchenko following Arsenal’s victory over Bournemouth.
Kai Havertz scored his debut goal for Arsenal as they comfortably defeated winless Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday. Havertz, who had struggled since his summer move from Bournemouth, converted a second-half penalty, securing a third consecutive away victory for the Gunners.
In addition to Havertz’s goal, Bukayo Saka opened the scoring, Martin Odegaard scored a penalty, and Ben White added another goal in added time, sealing a comprehensive win.
The result pushed Bournemouth into the relegation zone, as they have yet to secure a win in their first seven Premier League matches. Meanwhile, Arsenal continues to put pressure on title rivals Manchester City, who suffered a 2-1 loss to Wolves.
Despite the positive outcome, Smith Rowe appeared visibly upset as he left the field. The Hale End academy graduate had recently made his first start in 499 days for Arsenal during their Carabao Cup victory over Brentford earlier in the week.
— now.arsenal clips (@nowarsenal2) October 1, 2023
And against Bournemouth, the 23-year-old came on as a late substitute and squandered a chance to make it five for Arsenal in injury time.
After the game, Smith Rowe was visibly disappointed with his failure to convert and needed to be consoled by Oleksandr Zinchenko and Arsenal’s assistant coach Albert Stuivenberg. You can check it out in the above video, courtesy ofnow.arsenal clips.
Speaking this week, Smith Rowe said he needed to change his mentality to secure a starting role in Mikel Arteta’s side.
“Being at a massive club like Arsenal, we know there is so much competition,” said Smith Rowe, via the Metro.
“It is always going to be challenging, it is always going to be difficult to cement your place in the team. I have just got to keep believing in myself.
“Coming back and not quite getting back into the team, I have had to stay strong in my head and try to stay as positive as I can.
“I think the gaffer has really helped me with that. He was helping me through my injury and often pulled me for chats about how I can be mentally stronger, stuff like that.”