Arsenal’s forgotten man Mohamed Elneny popped up with a goal in a 4-1 pre-season win against MK Dons on Tuesday as he returned to the club from loan.
The Egypt international, whose last competitive match for the Gunners came in a 3-1 victory over Burnley in May 2019, started alongside Granit Xhaka in midfield for Mikel Arteta’s side.
Elneny broke the deadlock in the fourth minute when he capitalised on a wayward pass from MK Dons goalkeeper Lee Nicholls to hit the ball into an empty net from 40 yards.
The Gunners doubled their lead just six minutes later as Bukayo Saka’s cutback pass found Eddie Nketiah, whose first-time shot beat the goalkeeper
MK Dons got themselves back into the game in fortuitous circumstances before the break.
Former Manchester United defender Regan Poole’s cross was aimed for Carlton Morris, but Rob Holding got his head to the ball and inadvertently directed it past a helpless Bernd Leno in stunning fashion.
Mark McGuinness and Reiss Nelson added second-half goals to make it a routine victory for Arsenal.
The Egyptian international has struggled for regular game time and will be looking to do so if he is not sold by the Gunners in order to fund the purchase Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid.
Mohamed Elneny has played only 46 games for Arsenal since joining the club in 2016.
See the goal here:
That’s one way to return to action, @ElNennY! 🇪🇬 pic.twitter.com/MRnXSiYf1H
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 26, 2020
