At halftime, Arsenal had a commanding 3-0 lead. In the second half, Wenger simply substituted Lacazette and Welbeck, two key players, giving the away team face while also providing more opportunities for other young players to develop – a win-win situation.
However, this action made Bournemouth feel slighted, so they launched several counter-attacks in the second half, but still failed to break through Cech's defense.
The match ended 3-0, with the young substitute failing to capitalize on his opportunity to play, much to the dismay of onlookers.
Throughout the entire match, Lei Ming remained almost entirely seated on the bench. Although he didn't get to play, he received a lot of responses when he waved to the fans. He also saw all the banners the fans had put up for him and smiled as he expressed his gratitude.
Although he didn't play in this game, he wasn't upset at all because he knew very well how important he was to the team.
The packed schedule of the Premier League is also a major reason, as they will face two crucial matches in the next seven days.
The Europa League is undoubtedly a crucial competition for Arsenal right now.
In this season without the Champions League, the Europa League is undoubtedly another league where they can earn high revenue, and Arsenal can also gain a lot of exposure in this competition.
On September 15th, fans who missed seeing Lei Ming start in the previous match finally witnessed his debut at the Emirates Stadium. When he appeared, many fans raised banners they had prepared to welcome him.
"Ray, welcome to the Emirates Stadium!"
"Lei, I believe in you! Go for it!"
"Ray, let everyone see that you're the best!"
It's hard to imagine that, with only one appearance for Arsenal so far, Lei Ming already has such a large following at the Emirates Stadium. Even Wenger, who was watching from the sidelines, seemed a little surprised.
However, his expression remained unchanged despite all of this; he certainly hadn't forgotten that these people had been causing him trouble not long ago.
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"Ladies and gentlemen, can you see that? This is the cheering from the Emirates Stadium! This is the cheering that belongs only to Thunder!"
"Can you imagine that this is a player who has only played one game for Arsenal? Can you imagine that this is a player who has just joined Arsenal? But he really did it, and he conquered the discerning Gunners fans with his unique charm."
CCTV host Huang Xiaotian was deeply moved when he saw Lei Ming finally step onto the Emirates Stadium to start.
Along the way, he practically watched Lei Ming walk step by step to Arsenal, and he still remembered Lei Ming's clumsy saves when he first played for Monaco.
However, now, in just under a year, Lei Ming has become completely different. His transformation is almost visible to the naked eye, which is truly astonishing.
Liu Xin also laughed and said, "That's right. In this year, we have witnessed many amazing saves by Lei Ming. The fact that he was able to start for Arsenal this time is enough to show that he has gained the trust of Professor Wenger. After all, the Europa League is very important for Arsenal right now."
"This match will be the first group stage match in Group H, and they will face FC Köln from the Bundesliga."
"Lacazette was not included in the starting lineup for this match because he had a minor accident during training. The professor even fielded a 3-4-3 formation to prepare for the match against Cologne."
"Let's wait and see if the Gunners' attacking trio of Sanchez, Giroud, and Walcott can perform well in their first Europa League group stage match."
After the host's lengthy introduction, the audience gained a general understanding of some of the players on the field.
Just as some fans had finished washing some fruit or sunflower seeds and were getting ready to watch the game, the host's exclamation came from the television.
"Wow, let's take a look at Cologne's attack this time, it was so thrilling!"
"If Lei Ming hadn't played so brilliantly, this shot would definitely have been the first goal of the game."
Just as Huang Xiaotian was expressing his feelings, the big screen once again showed the replay of the match.
Arsenal, who had been firmly in control of the game, suffered a defensive lapse in the 8th minute due to a failed attack, which gave the opponent a good opportunity for a counter-attack.
Cologne's attacking player, Johan Cordoba, capitalized on the opportunity, creating a one-on-one chance.
At that moment, John Cordoba felt a surge of excitement as he faced Thunder's impending attack. He knew the goalkeeper well and was aware that he was currently the most valuable goalkeeper in the football world.
Being able to completely dominate such a talented goalkeeper filled John Cordoba with immense excitement.
To his utter surprise, just as he was about to shoot, the other player suddenly said to him, "You want to shoot into the far corner? No way, you big black guy."
It was precisely because of the other party's words that John Cordoba hesitated for a moment, which led to the ball being caught by the other party when he tried to change his shooting method, thus losing his shooting opportunity.
Yes, just now, he was right.
He did intend to shoot towards the far corner, but after hearing the opponent's words, he wanted to lob the ball. However, that one second of hesitation caused him to miss the shooting opportunity. Falling in the penalty area, he couldn't even win a penalty kick because the opponent made a clean save.
His save instantly ignited the passion of the fans at the Emirates Stadium, with many cheering for his goal.
After slamming down the ball, Lei Ming did not pass it immediately, but instead chose to pause before passing it.
In this match, Arsenal maintained absolute possession, knowing full well that as long as their attacking players had enough time, scoring a goal shouldn't be too far off.
That close call was entirely accidental; midfielder Iwobi failed to stop the opponent from receiving the ball in time, which created the one-on-one opportunity.
Soon, the course of the game proved Lei Ming's idea right. Apart from having an excellent attacking opportunity in the 9th minute, Cologne was almost entirely dominated by Arsenal for the rest of the first half.
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