STARLET Jaidon Anthony labelled his Premier League debut as a “special day” even if Cherries’ 3-0 defeat to Arsenal was “disappointing”.
Two first half goals from Martin Odegaard effectively decided the result 10 minutes into the game, leaving Cherries head coach Scott Parker to switch tactics at half-time.
The winger was introduced as a half-time substitute for Marcos Senesi, seeing Cherries move from a 3-5-1-1 to a 4-3-3, with Anthony deployed on the left-wing.
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William Saliba added a third shortly before the hour mark, but Cherries were notably improved in the second period.
Reflecting on his first taste of Premier League football, Anthony told the Daily Echo: “It was disappointing, the first half, for the team.
“They punished us very quickly and we didn't really get near them too much.
“So, we just wanted to try and make an impact in the second half, and get around them and I thought we'd done a bit better.
“Obviously disappointing result, but a special day.
“We didn't really get too close to them in the first half and the manager just wanted to try and get near them, get around them and I think the new formation definitely helped.
“It was a disappointing day overall. We'll learn from that, for sure.”
Released by Arsenal as a youngster, Anthony was playing non-league football with Weymouth just over two years ago.
Despite his meteoric rise and breakthrough into Cherries’ first team and promotion to the Premier League, the Hackney-born winger is remaining level headed.
When asked how he was feeling after becoming a Premier League player, he shared “I guess the same old Jaidon!
“Obviously a special day and one I dreamed of for a long time.
“I just want to get my head down and hopefully have a big impact this season, and get some more game time.”
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