Bukayo Saka has sent Ethan Nwaneri a message after he made his debut for Arsenal and scored two goals in the process in their Carabao Cup win over Bolton.

The 17-year-old netted either side of half-time on Wednesday night, helping his team to a 5-1 win at the Emirates Stadium. Arsenal will now face Preston North End in the fourth-round of the cup.

Despite making his debut two years ago, Nwaneri has had to be patient and wait for his moment to shine.

"I’m buzzing," he said after the game. "I’m so happy to have helped the team go through to the next round and I am just ready for whatever’s next. It’s a great feeling when the club you love, the club you’ve grown up with, the fans are chanting your name.

"It’s a surreal feeling. It’s a feeling I’ve wanted to feel for almost 16 years of my life so to actually feel it, it’s crazy… I just want more of it.

"It's been intense, but I think it's definitely helped me as a player, and helped me to see what it's like, and how they prepare.

"I've added that to my game, so definitely it's been good to be around those players. "There's a perfect balance for when they're on me and telling me what to do, but they definitely put an arm around me, too, so it's a good balance."

He also took to Instagram to post some pictures of the game, alongside Saka, Declan Rice and Josh Nichols. No caption was needed with the teenager simply posting a red and white emoji.

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Saka, who was spotted in the comments, posted a star emoji. The simple message gathered over 4200 likes.

Fellow Hale End academy graduate Saka also took to his Instagram stories to share a picture. He wrote: "Onto the next one, congrats on your debuts boys, [red emoji]."

Nwaneri was one of four teenagers who started for Arsenal, alongside Myles Lewis-Skelly, Nichols and Jack Porter. "All the players that I’ve played with since I’ve been like nine and now we’re on the big pitch together," Nwaneri added. "It’s a crazy feeling. It’s good."

Goalkeeper Porter, became the youngest ever player to start a game for the Gunners, at the age of 16.

Speaking of Nwaneri, Gunners boss Mikel Arteta said: "I think it was a really strong performance for him. I think he really feels part of us. You can tell that he's playing with that confidence, that belief and the understanding of what he needs to do on the pitch - so very impressed."

"Let's go. It is another step. He is ahead of what anybody could expect.

"In his journey with the first team he is always ahead of what everybody expected and I expected, too. He deserves that and he is part of us so he will have the minutes."