Guimaraes makes Arsenal debut in 1-1 friendly draw with Como

Bruno Guimaraes made his Arsenal debut as a second-half substitute in a 1-1 friendly draw with Como at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. He also converted his spot-kick in a pre-arranged penalty shootout after the match.

Arsenal announced Guimaraes as a £75m signing from Newcastle United on Saturday and introduced him to supporters before their friendly with Dortmund on Sunday. Fans arrived at the Emirates on Wednesday evening expecting to see him, but he had to wait until half-time to be brought on as the new number 39.

Myles Lewis-Skelly opened the scoring in the first half before Martin Baturina levelled for Como; Guimaraes entered the game at half-time and was greeted with chants of "Bruno," with his first touch met by cheers from the crowd. His early involvement drew audible approval from the stands.

Shortly after coming on Guimaraes produced a recovery tackle to halt a Como counter-attack and played the ball to goalkeeper David Raya, a passage of play that was cheered like a goal. There were also early signs of a midfield understanding between Guimaraes and captain Martin Odegaard.

Mikel Arteta had selected an experimental starting XI that included five academy graduates, but around the hour mark he introduced what was described as his strongest available side with thoughts of the Community Shield against Manchester City on Sunday. Guimaraes had been operating alongside Lewis-Skelly, but after Lewis-Skelly was withdrawn and Mikel Merino and Odegaard came on, the new signing moved into the deepest midfield role.

The match drifted at times as the substitutions and a second-half drinks break disrupted the flow, though Kai Havertz, Noni Madueke and Cristhian Mosquera all had efforts before the end. Guimaraes attempted a chipped pass behind the Como defence which Havertz finished, but the offside flag ruled the strike out; that type of pass was tried a couple of times and will give supporters encouragement he can help the Gunners find their attacking flow as the season gets under way.

Guimaraes scored confidently in the post-match penalty shootout, a successful spot-kick that should boost his confidence ahead of the first competitive match of Arsenal's season on Sunday.