Arsenal were held to a draw by Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of their round of 16 tie in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
The Gunners came close early on when Gabriel Martinelli’s powerful effort hit the crossbar, following a neat move involving Jurrien Timber and Viktor Gyokeres. This was the only threatening moment either side managed to conjure up in what was a cagey and robotic first half.
Leverkusen started the second half in blistering fashion, taking the lead a minute into the second period when Robert Andrich headed past David Raya from a corner. It took a while, but the North Londoners eventually responded with two minutes left to play, when Noni Madueke’s driving run won a penalty which Kai Havertz converted expertly.
While they’ll be relieved to leave the Rhineland with the tie level, Mikel Arteta’s men will have to play a lot better in the second leg to progress into the last eight.
Match Highlights
Arsenal Player Ratings vs Bayer Leverkysen
David Raya – 6/10
He had little to do from a shot-stopping standpoint, although he was outstanding at claiming the several crosses that Leverkusen pumped into his box. Had little chance on Andrich’s goal.
Jurrien Timber – 4/10
Struggled in possession throughout, but didn’t allow anything from Leverkusen to develop down his side.
William Saliba – 6/10
Arsenal missed the French defender at Brighton, and this was most evident in their build-up in Germany. He was largely good on the ball throughout, whilst sweeping up effectively defensively.
Gabriel Magalhaes – 5/10
The Brazilian made a crucial block in the first half, but allowed Christian Kofane to turn him too easily on a number of occasions.
Piero Hincapie – 4/10
A somewhat disappointing performance against his former club. Sloppy in possession, and this sloppiness derailed a number of Arsenal attacks.
Martin Zubimendi – 6/10
Much better defensively than in recent games, although the Spaniard was extremely risk-averse in possession, and this hindered the Gunners’ ball progression.
Declan Rice – 6/10
Very similar performance to his midfield partner. Conducted some impressive defensive work, but his passing was too slow and not progressive enough.
Eberechi Eze – 5/10
Aside from a handful of cute touches in and around the box, this was another game that passed Eberechi Eze by.
Bukayo Saka – 3/10
An off night for Arsenal’s star boy. Regularly made the wrong decision when in dangerous positions, and struggled to take advantage of the space left by the marauding Alejandro Grimaldo.
Viktor Gyokeres – 4/10
A mixed performance from Viktor Gyokeres. While there were some neat touches and some aggressive runs into the channel, he wasn’t much of a factor in Leverkusen’s box.
Gabriel Martinelli – 4/10
Was unlucky when he hit the bar early on, but ultimately didn’t do enough in possession.
Subs
Noni Madueke – 7/10
Made something of an impact when he came on, and did well to win the penalty with his driving run inside the box.
Kai Havertz – N/A
Not on long enough to rate, although he converted his penalty impressively.
Gabriel Jesus – N/A
Not on long enough to rate.
Man of the Match – N/A
From a Leverkusen perspective, there were a number of standout performers. Andrich was astute defensively and scored the goal, Exequiel Palacios protected the back four excellently and Kofane led the line admirably.
However, from an Arsenal point of view, no one was worthy of being awarded the man of the match tag. William Saliba was solid defensively and used the ball well for the most part, but the French centre-back also had moments of sloppiness and wasn’t worthy of being given significant plaudits for his performance.
Madueke arguably emerged from the game with the most credit, despite only being introduced on the hour mark.
