Pablo Mari has expressed his happiness at making his first Arsenal appearance, after being named in the starting line-up for the Under-23 game against Chelsea.
The Spanish centre-back was aiming to gain match fitness ahead of a potential first-team debut in Thursday's Europe League tie against Olympiacos.
Arsenal's young side were beaten 2-1 at Boreham Wood by their west London rivals, with goals from Armando Broja and Billy Gilmour enough to seal the points.
But Mari got 45 minutes under his belt, alongside Rob Holding, and took to social media on Tuesday morning to reveal his delight.
In a tweet, the defender wrote: 'Great feelings during my first minutes in Arsenal colours yesterday!'
He also stated his intentions to make a big impression in the coming months, by adding: 'Keep working hard!'
Mari's first-team bow could come away in Greece as hinted at by Arteta last week.
"Pablo hasn't competed since the end of December," Arteta stated in his pre-Newcastle press conference. "He had a little issue. He's been training with us the last week or so in and out a little bit. He's been looking good.
"I think this game will come a little bit too early for him but I expect him to start joining the squad in the next week or so."
