Borussia Dortmund managing director Lars Ricken was delighted to see many of their young players on target against Arsenal in the Emirates Cup.
The BVB won the match 3-2 as Samuele Inacio, Konstantinos Karetsas and Joane Gadou were on target for the Bundesliga side, who clinched the cup in the Emirates.
It took them only seven minutes to break the deadlock as Inacio fired from the edge of the box before Karetsas made it 2-0 with a wonderful curl into the bottom corner following a fiery 40-yard run.
Gadou also bagged his first goal in Dortmund colors after a corner was played to him inside the box and the Frenchman slammed a powerful strike home for 3-1.
In his post-match press address, Ricken expressed delight at seeing their talented teenage stars score for Die Schwarzgelben. He said:
" “We saw some great plays. Of course, it’s great when two 18-year-olds – Inacio and Karetsas – along with 19-year-old Gadou score the goals. But it only works if the experienced players around them also deliver. And that’s exactly what they did. ""
The highlight of the victory was the highly-anticipated debut of Konstantinos Karetsas, who completed a €30 million transfer from Belgian Pro League side KRC Genk last week.
Just 29 minutes in, the Greek international announced himself to Dortmund fans with a stunning effort, curling it brilliantly into the bottom corner after catching Arsenal on the break from near the halfway line.
Karetsas was also involved in the opening goal, pulling defenders towards him in order to create space for Inacio to strike as the 18-year-old displayed excellent game-reading ability and spatial intelligence.
Some generous words of puffery were reserved by Ricken for him as well:
""When I think of Ramy, Nmecha, and Silva, who really pushed the pace up front. Alex Meyer exuded an incredible calm. That allows the young players to shine alongside them and make their own highlights. I was particularly impressed by how alert Kosta was after just five days of training, how he got involved in the game, and how confident on the ball and selfless he was.”"added the BVB sporting director
After full-time, the sides engaged in a penalty shootout too where Dortmund midfielder Mathis Albert saw his attempt saved by Arsenal goalkeeper Illan Meslier as the Gunners won 5-4 and salvaged some pride.
Borussia Dortmund play their last friendly of the summer against AS Roma on Saturday, 15 August.
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