Dropped Super Eagles forward Arokodare scores in Wolves’ loss to Arsenal

By Tosin Omojola –

Hours after he was omitted from Nigeria’s 28-man squad for the Africa Cup of Nations, Super Eagles forward Tolu Arokodare responded to the disappointment by getting on the scoresheet for his English Premier League side, Wolverhampton Wanderers, against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

The lanky forward headed in a 90th-minute equaliser for Wolves against the Gunners on Saturday night, but that proved insufficient to prevent defeat.

Coming off a painful loss to Aston Villa, which was followed by a resounding 3-0 win over Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League, Mikel Arteta’s men found it difficult to secure victory against bottom-placed Wolves.

Arokodare and his teammates were undone by two own goals, with the second coming deep into stoppage time.

After holding Arsenal for the entire first 45 minutes and 24 minutes into the second half, Wolves finally caved in in the 70th minute when Sam Johnstone turned the ball into his own net to give Arsenal the lead.

Arokodare thought he had salvaged a point for his side at the Emirates when he headed Wolves level on the dot of 90 minutes.

However, the Nigerian international and his teammates had their hearts broken through another own goal, as Yerson Mosquera headed the ball into his own net four minutes into added time to gift the league leaders all three points.

Arsenal maintained their grip on top spot in the Premier League with the victory, opening a five-point lead over Manchester City, who could narrow the gap if they beat Crystal Palace on Sunday.