By Ed Maylon at the Emirates
Boca Juniors midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme heaped praise on Arsenal‘s young midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, who featured in the Emirates Cup game against the Argentine club.
The Ghana-born starlet was very impressive through the course of the game on Saturday, albeit being part of a team that threw away a two-goal lead to finish all square at 2-2.
Within the club, there is a lot of hope that Frimpong will step into the first-team this season and resume his partnership with Jack Wilshere that had been a consistent feature at youth level since they were both aged just 11.
The 19-year-old is yet to make a league appearance for Arsenal, but his strong first-half display proved to be the perfect foil to Wilshere’s drive and creativity. When his midfield partner was withdrawn at half-time, he had a noticeably tougher job keeping possession for the Gunners and trying to monitor Riquelme.
Boca’s mercurial playmaker told Goal.com after the game: “Frimpong was the most important player for Arsenal… him and Wilshere were our toughest opponents.”
This view was shared by Boca’s manager Julio Cesar Falcioni, who told Goal.com that Frimpong has “a power and technique that is very impressive. He could be a great player”.
Frimpong has not made a single competitive appearance for Arsenal so far.
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