'Tears in my eyes': Emile Smith Rowe shows Arsenal what they're missing just seven minutes into his Fulham debut
Emile Smith Rowe wasted no time in impressing for Fulham after scoring just seven minutes into his debut.
The Cottagers signed the midfielder in a club record. £34m deal last week to end his 14-year stay in north London.
A hugely popular figure amongst Gunners supporters, the 24-year-old has already shown that Arsenal He might regret letting him go moments after coming on for the second half.
Facing Sevilla in a pre-season friendly in Portugal – a match they lost 2-1 – Smith Rowe He came on as a substitute with his side two goals down, before immediately reducing the deficit with a diving header from Antonee Robinson's cross.
While Fulham Fans will be delighted to see their new signing score as the Gooners are already missing the Hale End graduate.
“I'm going to miss him at Arsenal,” said one fan on social media, while another wrote: “We should never have sold this lad.”
A third follower posted on X: “God I'm going to miss Smith Rowe so much.”
This fan commented: “(Alex) Iwobi and Smith Rowe are going to lose us the league by one point, aren't they?”
“That's it. We want him back,” wrote another Arsenal fan, while another simply stated: “I have tears in my eyes.”
Smith Rowe, who made 115 appearances for Arsenal, scoring 15 goals and providing 13 assists, could not hide his delight after completing his move to west London.
Expressing his enthusiasm to Fulham websiteSmith Rowe said: “I'm finally here so I'm really happy for myself and my family – it's a good time.
“I'm really excited, I just wanted to get here as quickly as possible so I could get going with my teammates.
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“Listening to the project, talking to the coach (Marco Silva) and seeing what players we have here already, I think it is an exciting project for me and definitely the perfect step for my career in the future.”
Meanwhile, Arteta was devastated by his sale, saying: “Emile's commitment, attitude and energy every day was top class, always stepping up when the team needed him.
“He came into the first team and was decisive in a difficult moment for us.
“He made a big impression and made our fans proud with his good performances.
“I'm sad that Emile is leaving us, but excited for him to take advantage of this new opportunity at this stage of his career, when he needs to be a starter and play regularly.
“Emile is loved by everyone at the club and leaves us with our gratitude, absolute respect and best wishes.
“We all wish Emile and his family the best at Fulham.”
