Recollecting encounters with Bayern Munich is usually self-destructive for Arsenal players, but Eddie Nketiah is different.
Bayern have become the physical manifestation of a Champions League glass ceiling for the Gunners: seven successive last-16 exits, three of the last four coming at the hands of the Bundesliga giants and, most recently, by a mammoth 10-2 aggregate margin.
The teams met again in July during Arsenal’s whistle-stop pre-season tour of China — the Gunners edging to victory on penalties — and while a win in such circumstances does little to redress the latter-day gulf between the two sides, it was an occasion which sparked something in Nketiah.
Arsenal would not be contesting tonight’s Carabao Cup quarter-final against West Ham were it not for the Lewisham-born 18-year-old, who marked only his second senior appearance with a brace against Norwich; his first touch secured an equaliser, before a towering header from a youngster standing just 5ft 7in sealed an extra-time win.
“Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!” chanted an enthralled crowd and the club subsequently responded by handing Nketiah (left) a new long-term contract. However, he traces his rise back to that Bayern experience.
“It was huge and allowed me to improve my game as I was training with the first team day-in, day-out in China,” he said. “I think it evolved my game and it was just a great experience in general. Fingers crossed I just get more and more experiences like that.
“I managed to get some minutes against Bayern and went up against some of the best defenders in the world in [Mats] Hummels and [David] Alaba, so it was a really good test, which improved me.
“It made me even more hungry for this season and gave me the right mentality to push on and work hard to really get more opportunities, because ultimately that’s my end goal, to play against the best players in the world more often.”
An Arsenal fan from the outset, Nketiah joined Chelsea when he was nine but was released, aged 14, over concerns about his height.
Despite those concerns, Arsenal scout Ian Gilmour quickly snapped him up — a decision vindicated by the manner of that winning goal against Norwich — and although he has made only three substitute appearances in the Europa League since, that breakthrough saved manager Arsene Wenger from acute embarrassment and earned the teenager cult status from the Emirates faithful.
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“That night will stay with me for ever,” he said. “I’m just so grateful to the boss for giving me the chance and to the fans for welcoming me by singing my name like that. I’m just happy to have been able to help the team with a couple of goals.
“It was another great moment and was nice to be able to give back to the boss for believing in me. I wasn’t really nervous, I’ve been scoring goals all my life, so I’ve always believed I could go out there and do it.
“To bring it into reality was incredible and I wouldn’t say I feel any pressure now. I’m just trying to stick to my normal game and play and train hard, so that when the next opportunity arises I’m ready to make the impact again.”
That next opportunity may come from the bench on Tuesday, even though Wenger is set to rotate his squad heavily, with Friday’s Premier League visit of Liverpool in mind.
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Mohamed Elneny, David Ospina, Calum Chambers and Mathieu Debuchy are among those set to feature, while Nketiah will push Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck for a starting place up front.
West Ham have improved defensively under David Moyes but, after battling Bayern, Nketiah will not be fazed one bit.