**Borussia Dortmund head coach Niko Kovac has praised Arsenal loanee Ethan Nwaneri, despite deciding to take off the midfielder after sending him on as a substitute.**
The 19-year-old replaced the injured Konstantinos Karetsas just 27 minutes into the 3-2 win over Villarreal in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Nwaneri was then substituted himself in the last 10 minutes of the match, with former Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka taking his place.
Asked to explain his decision after the final whistle, Kovac revealed it was due to fitness reasons:
“He gave everything. If he had started the game, he probably would have come off around the 60th minute.”
Nwaneri played well against Villarreal
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Not only did Kovac clarify his reasoning for the midfielder’s substitution, but he went on to praise his performance:
“Quite the opposite; he was really good. It was great that he was able to have an impact on the team in such a short time.”
Nwaneri actually hit the post during his 55 minutes on the pitch, and he took 5 other shots too.
The Arsenal loanee has got off to a strong start in Germany
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Considering the difficulties that [**Nwaneri**](https://goonernews.com/blog/arsenal-transfer-news-ethan-nwaneri-7/) faced in his previous loan spell at Marseille last season, the Gunners were keen for his next move to have a better outcome.
So far, it looks like Dortmund will be a better temporary home. His debut against Hoffenheim was impressive. Again, he came on as a substitute for an injured player, replacing Filippo Mane after 32 minutes.
Nwaneri did stay on for the rest of the game, and he created the winning goal, providing the pass before Albian Hajdari put the ball into his own net.
Of course, the England Under-21 international will be keen to start matches going forward, but his manager seems suitably impressed by what he has seen so far.