For the first time in Arsene Wenger's long reign, Arsenal are playing their European football in the Europa League after failing to qualify for the Champions League.The Gunners lost out on the final day of last season as Liverpool sealed the fourth and final spot with a 3-0 win over already relegated Middlesbrough.It is odd to see Wenger's side on Thursday nights but so far, they have coped pretty well, with the manager using the competition as a perfect way to rotate and give squad players crucial minutes.In their first game, they came from a goal down to beat FC Koln 3-1 after making significant changes and against BATE Borisov last night, they were even more impressive.They were 3-0 up after half hour, eventually going on to win 4-2 with the Belorussian hosts turning in a dire defensive display.Reiss Nelson, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott all seized their opportunity and one man brought up a very significant milestone.

GIROUD CENTURY

Olivier Giroud - who joined the club from Montpellier in 2012 - notched his 100th goal for the club from the penalty spot.

He has not often been a starter for the club, but no one can deny that the £12m French international has been a resounding success for Wenger. In fact, he's been a bargain.

Arsenal fans were understandably happy for Giroud but, in typical fashion on Twitter, they found a way to have a dig at someone.

That man was Robin van Persie, as they bathed in the glory of knowing that Giroud beat the Dutchman to the century mark by just one game. Take it away Twitter.

ARSENAL FANS TWEETS

Any excuse to troll the man who ditched them for Manchester United just before Giroud's arrival.

Of course, the Frenchman is nowhere near the player Van Persie was during his final few years at the club but he has been dependable, bailing Arsenal out of many sticky situations, usually with his head.

Giroud is likely to find minutes in the Premier League this season due to the presence of summer signing Alexandre Lacazette.

However, 27 of his 100 goals have come from the bench, so don't bet against him significantly increasing his tally anyway.

Do YOU want to write for GiveMeSport? Get started today by signing-up and submitting an article HERE: http://gms.to/writeforgms