Arsenal fans will love what Emile Smith Rowe was doing with former teammates before Fulham kick off

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Arsenal faced a trip across the capital to face several former Gunners at Fulham on match day 15.

After Arsenal’s dominant win over Manchester United, Mikel Arteta’s squad returned to action with a London derby against Fulham. 

The Gunners lost to Marco Silva’s side last season, prompting the visitors to up their game for Sunday afternoon’s visit.

Arsenal came up against several former Gunners at Fulham, including summer sale Emile Smith Rowe. 

Emile Smith Rowe spotted with Arsenal squad before Fulham clash 

Smith Rowe joins Alex Iwobi and loanee Reiss Nelson at Craven Cottage as graduates from Hale End.

It was a difficult goodbye for the Gunners to bid farewell to the midfielder in the summer, who joined Fulham for £34m after the 2023/24 campaign. 

Arteta let Smith Rowe go to discover a fresh start away from the Emirates however, a part of Arsenal remains in the 24-year-old’s heart.

Such was evident before kick-off at Craven Cottage, as Arsenal’s media team posted a video of Arteta’s squad walking out of the dressing room. 

The video saw Smith Rowe laughing and joking with his former teammates, talking to Thomas Partey with a beaming smile as he headed onto the pitch.

While the midfielder now sees Arsenal as the opposition, it was heartwarming to see the academy graduate linking up with some familiar faces before kick off.

Smith Rowe has impressed at Fulham since leaving the Emirates, reminding his former club of the threat he can pose when on the ball.

Marco Silva understands Smith Rowe’s love for Arsenal

Sunday afternoon’s contest represented the first time that Smith Rowe had come up against Arsenal, his boyhood club.

The midfielder was just 10 years old when he joined the scene at Hale End, rising through the ranks alongside a host of star faces both at the Emirates and around the Premier League.

Prior to kick-off at Craven Cottage, Fulham boss Silva admitted that he expected his player to feel ‘emotional’ about coming up against the Gunners.

“It’s probably going to be an emotional game for Emile,” Silva said to Sky Sports. 

“I’m not talking about extra motivation or not, but emotional for sure it’s going to be for Emile and it is what it is.

“He’s going to face a club that he loves for sure, but now he’s in love with Fulham too and he’s going to fight and he’s going to do his maximum for us to win the game.”

Times have changed for both Smith Rowe and Arsenal, with both parties having their own objectives this season.