Junichi Inamoto made his Arsenal debut in a competitive match Wednesday when the Japan midfielder came on as a second-half substitute in the London side's 3-2 win at home to Schalke 04 in the European Champions League.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger replaced French international Robert Pires with Inamoto in the 75th minute and the former Gamba Osaka player put on a solid performance before a crowd of 35,361 to help stifle the German club's comeback attempts.
Inamoto is the second Japanese to play in the top European club competition after Yasuhiko Okudera in the 1978-1979 season for Cologne when it was known as the European Champions Cup.
"It was a little tough to play as a substitute, but I had no trouble when I got the ball and was able to enjoy the game. Above all, I stood on the pitch in an official match and that was the best thing for me," Inamoto said.