*Arsenal Now Only 2nd Premier League Club With 2,000 Wins
Arsenal has reached an extraordinary milestone by securing their 2,000th top-flight victory following their 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest, as reported on the Club’s website. This achievement solidifies the Gunners’ status as one of the most successful and enduring clubs in English football history.
This accomplishment comes as the club continues its push to reclaim the Premier League title after a 20-year drought. Despite falling short to Manchester City in the past two campaigns, Arsenal has shown tremendous growth under Mikel Arteta. The manager has reinvigorated the squad with a mix of experienced talents and young stars, building a team that is not only competitive but also capable of breaking records.
As of now, Arsenal is second only to Liverpool in the all-time list of top-flight wins, with the Reds boasting 2,068 victories. However, Arsenal’s trajectory under Arteta suggests they could close this gap in the coming seasons. The manager has overseen a remarkable turnaround at the club, winning a significant percentage of his matches in charge, which reflects the team’s upward trajectory.Published
Arsenal returned to winning ways by overcoming Nottingham Forest 3-0 thanks to some familiar names – and an exciting 17-year-old talent from Nigeria.
Mikel Arteta’s side had fallen away in the Premier League title race after failing to win their previous four games.
But Bukayo Saka, who pulled out of England’s recent Nations League fixtures with a leg injury, set Arsenal on their way with his first goal in five matches after combining with captain Martin Odegaard.
Saka then teed up Thomas Partey to double the lead before attacking midfielder Ethan Nwaneri, who does not turn 18 until March, offered a glimpse into Arsenal’s future by sealing the points with his first top-flight goal.
London-born Nwaneri (17 years and 247 days old) became the second-youngest player to score a Premier League goal for Arsenal, behind only Fabregas (17 years and 113 days in 2004), who went on to win the World Cup with Spain.
He is also the ninth youngest scorer in Premier League history.
“I have seen Ethan Nwaneri a couple of times and he’s extra special,” former Scotland winger Pat Nevin told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Arsenal left Kai Havertz and Declan Rice out and we hardly even noticed it.”
It was the perfect way for Arteta to mark his 250th game in charge of the Gunners, who moved six points behind leaders Liverpool having played one game more.
Nwaneri became the youngest player in Premier League history when he came on in the closing moments of Arsenal’s 3-0 win at Brentford in September 2022 aged just 15 years and 181 days.
“School in the morning, he’s got school in the morning,” sang Arsenal’s travelling fans at the time.
On Saturday, tens of thousands of fans inside Emirates Stadium sang “he’s one of our own, Ethan Nwaneri, he’s one of our own” after he scored.
Fans have been calling for the teenager to get more minutes after promising performances in the EFL Cup, and his well-taken goal against Forest will only add to the clamour.
He has scored four goals in 238 minutes this season, with 170 of those minutes in the EFL Cup, 60 in the Premier League and eight in the Champions League.
Across the big five European leagues, Nwaneri is one of only two players aged under 18 to have scored more than once across all competitions this term after 17-year-old Barcelona and Spain talent Lamine Yamal.
