German media reach Ethan Nwaneri verdict as Arsenal loanee hauled off on first Dortmund start
Ethan Nwaneri seems to be enjoying life at Dortmund(Image: Getty)
Ethan Nwaneri continued to make an impression in Germany after making his first start for Borussia Dortmund in their 3-0 win over Paderborn on Saturday.
The 19-year-old Arsenal loanee made his third appearance for Dortmund since joining on transfer deadline day, helping them maintain their 100 per cent start to the season. The result leaves Niko Kovac's side joint-top of the Bundesliga alongside Freiburg.
Nwaneri has featured in all three games since his arrival, although Saturday was his first from the off. He had previously come off the bench in the first half against Hoffenheim and Villarreal.
The England Under-21 international was substituted after 65 minutes against Paderborn, with Dortmund leading 1-0 thanks to Fabio Silva's fifth-minute opener. Felix Nmecha then struck twice in the final 10 minutes to secure a comfortable victory.
Nwaneri's performance drew a mixed response from the German media. In their post-match player ratings, Goal Deutschland gave him 3.5 out of 6 - with 1 being the highest possible rating on the German grading scale.
They noted that Nwaneri "needed time to get going" but became increasingly involved as the game progressed and was unlucky not to get on the scoresheet.
The rating added: "The on-loan Arsenal player made his first start for Borussia Dortmund. Although he managed four ball recoveries before halftime, Nwaneri needed some time to get going offensively. He tried hard and, as the game progressed, was more frequently involved in the attacking third.
"In the 59th minute, Guirassy played him through in the penalty area, but goalkeeper Noll saved his shot - there was more potential there."
Nwaneri made his first start for Dortmund on Saturday(Image: Getty Images)
Footy awarded Nwaneri a rating of 3, describing his performance as "brilliant" and praising him for "repeatedly increasing the tempo of the game". However, they felt he was unable to match the elite level of others in the team.
Their rating reads: "He covered an enormous amount of ground and brilliantly managed to repeatedly increase the tempo in midfield. He also acted as a clever distributor of the ball. However, he couldn't quite match the outstanding performances of his attacking team-mates Fabio Silva and Serhou Guirassy. Furthermore, he squandered a golden opportunity in the 59th minute, missing a golden chance to effectively seal the victory and make it 2-0."
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) focused on his attacking threat in their match report. They noted that after the half-time break, Dortmund had good opportunities to extend their lead, singling out Nwaneri and team-mate Guirassy as getting into highly promising goalscoring positions, only to be denied by a strong performance from Paderborn's goalkeeper, Noll.
One German publication described Nwaneri's performance as "brilliant"(Image: Getty)
BILD were more critical of Nwaneri's display. While acknowledging some neat passages of play, they felt he failed to make a significant impact and awarded him a rating of 4.
Nwaneri acknowledged after the game that both he and Dortmund could have performed better, but believes the team are moving in the right direction.
"I don't think we played our best game. We found a way to win again. That's a good sign, but I think we really made it hard on ourselves at times," he told BVB TV. "It was especially difficult in the final third. Still, we can build on this, and it's a good result.
"We're making good progress. There are still situations where we need to work on being more in sync. But I think everything is coming together nicely. We just have to keep training, keep playing, and hopefully we'll keep getting better and better."
Nwaneri has struggled to break into Mikel Arteta's first team plans(Image: Getty Images)
Nwaneri broke into Arsenal's first team during the 2024/25 season and looked set to establish himself as a regular under Mikel Arteta. However, his opportunities were limited last season, with the midfielder making just six Premier League appearances.
He spent the second half of the campaign on loan at Marseille, though his promising performances in France were not enough to earn him a place in Arteta's plans for the new season. Dortmund subsequently moved to sign him on a season-long loan.
Nwaneri will be eligible to face Arsenal when Dortmund visit the Emirates Stadium in the Champions League in November. Unlike the Premier League, UEFA competitions do not prevent loan players from playing against their parent clubs.
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