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Played
July 23, 2011 2:30 PM BST
RheinEnergieStadion, Köln
Referee: Christian Fischer
Attendance: 41500
July 23, 2011 2:30 PM BST
RheinEnergieStadion, Köln
Referee: Christian Fischer
Attendance: 41500
Koln 1-2 Arsenal: Gervinho grabs brace on 30-minute debut as Gunners win despite Jenkinson own goal
The Ivorian notched two goals inside 15 minutes to seal a pre-season friendly victory but a bizarre incident prevented a clean sheet for Arsene Wenger's men
By David Lynch
Thorsten Wagner
Gervinho scored two goals in half an hour on his Arsenal debut as the Gunners showed their class to grab victory over Koln in Germany.
The Ivorian, starting his first match for the London club, grabbed two goals before making an early exit with Arsene Wenger having seemingly seen enough of his new attacker.
Koln promised to provide a greater challenge early on, a Novakovic free kick sent just over the bar after Podolski was brought down on the very edge of the box.
However, this was one of their few contributions to the half as Arsenal dominated from then on enjoying a large share of possession and creating several chances.
Debut man Gervinho seemed intent on making his presence instantly known to the Arsenal faithful and gained the opportunity to do so just six minutes into the match.
Bending his run well to latch onto a beautifully weighted Jack Wilshere through ball, the former Lille forward showed his composure to lob the onrushing Koln keeper.
Arsenal pressure did not cease after gaining an early lead and they doubled it, again through Gervinho, just nine minutes later.
Theo Walcott found space on the right hand side after a slip by Koln full back Andrezinho and squared it for an easy finish for Gervinho.
After enjoying such domination, Arsenal offered a way back into the match for Koln in bizarre fashion on the stroke of half time.
Young defender Carl Jenkinson swung wildly at the ball in an attempt to clear only to see it slice violently in the air and sail all of 20 yards to lob Szczesny in the Arsenal goal.
It was certainly more than Koln deserved given their poor showing but they began the second half determined to atone for that lacklustre effort.
They enjoyed several early chances, the best of which fell to Novakovic who was again a touch wasteful in front of goal.
However, the second half petered out to a slower pace as both sides continued to make changes throughout and the pace became somewhat disjointed.
Despite victory, Arsene Wenger will not have ended the match completely happy after seeing young midfielder Conor Henderson stretchered off with what looked like a painful ankle twist towards the end of the game.
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The Ivorian, starting his first match for the London club, grabbed two goals before making an early exit with Arsene Wenger having seemingly seen enough of his new attacker.
Koln promised to provide a greater challenge early on, a Novakovic free kick sent just over the bar after Podolski was brought down on the very edge of the box.
However, this was one of their few contributions to the half as Arsenal dominated from then on enjoying a large share of possession and creating several chances.
Debut man Gervinho seemed intent on making his presence instantly known to the Arsenal faithful and gained the opportunity to do so just six minutes into the match.
Bending his run well to latch onto a beautifully weighted Jack Wilshere through ball, the former Lille forward showed his composure to lob the onrushing Koln keeper.
Arsenal pressure did not cease after gaining an early lead and they doubled it, again through Gervinho, just nine minutes later.
Theo Walcott found space on the right hand side after a slip by Koln full back Andrezinho and squared it for an easy finish for Gervinho.
After enjoying such domination, Arsenal offered a way back into the match for Koln in bizarre fashion on the stroke of half time.
Young defender Carl Jenkinson swung wildly at the ball in an attempt to clear only to see it slice violently in the air and sail all of 20 yards to lob Szczesny in the Arsenal goal.
It was certainly more than Koln deserved given their poor showing but they began the second half determined to atone for that lacklustre effort.
They enjoyed several early chances, the best of which fell to Novakovic who was again a touch wasteful in front of goal.
However, the second half petered out to a slower pace as both sides continued to make changes throughout and the pace became somewhat disjointed.
Despite victory, Arsene Wenger will not have ended the match completely happy after seeing young midfielder Conor Henderson stretchered off with what looked like a painful ankle twist towards the end of the game.
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Goal
Own Goal
Penalty
Penalty Missed
Yellow Card
Assist
Penalty Save
Penalty Shootout Goal
Penalty Shootout Miss
Yellow Card / Red Card
Red Card
Substitution IN
Substitution OUT
Injury
Goal.com Rating
Goal.com Man of the Match
Goal.com Flop of the Match
Top & Flop Global Ranking
Fans' Man of the Match
Fans' Flop of the Match
Results
Times In BST
Match News
Top Scorers
| Player | Goals | Penalties | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Cristiano Ronaldo
Striker Real Madrid |
5 | 1 |
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Karim Benzema
Striker Real Madrid |
5 | 0 |
|
Heiðar Helguson
Striker QPR |
5 | 0 |
|
Jason Roberts
Striker Blackburn |
4 | 1 |
|
Wayne Rooney
Striker Manchester United |
4 | 0 |
