Smith proud of killer instinct in win over Palace

Josh Smith was pleased to see our under-18s use the lessons they've learned in the early stages of the season to finish off our win over Crystal Palace on Saturday.

We took a 1-0 lead for the third game in a row (fourth including our UEFA Youth League win over Napoli), but this was the first of those matches in which we've scored the next goal.

"It was a really controlled performance compared to last week," Smith said, "very similar in terms of going 1-0 up.

"The biggest learning from last week was if we get the second goal, then we can have more control with that.

"I didn't like how we started, it was a little bit slow, it took us around half an hour to get going. But as soon as we scored that first goal, the last 15 minutes [of the first half] and the second half, in terms of the territory that we had, was much, much better."

Our performance was a mature one against the Eagles, staying calm throughout and controlling the game.

Smith was especially proud of this element of the performance given the young make-up of the team.

"The best way to sum it up would be a mature performance from a very young team. Once everyone calmed down [after the first goal], there was a lot more control.

"Today we only started with four second years, so very, very pleasing."

Saturday's win was the third game in seven days for several of our young Gunners, with our first UEFA Youth League game against Napoli on Wednesday splitting U18 Premier League games against Southampton and Crystal Palace.

Smith was impressed not only with the fact that we've won all three games, but also the way our young Gunners have managed the significant demands of our schedule.

"There were a lot of boys that travelled to Napoli. This is what we're trying to prepare them for if they do want to have those long-term careers, having to go Tuesday, Saturday, Wednesday, and repeating.

"We have an under-17s game on Tuesday against West Brom, where a lot of the lads will then go again. You can feel the energy shifting, there's a lot more momentum, there's a lot more togetherness within the group."