Arsenal continued their unbeaten start to the UEFA Champions League this season with a narrow 2-1 victory over Slavia Prague at the Fortuna Arena tonight. First half goals from Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyökeres secured all three points for Mikel Arteta’s side who win in Prague just as they did a year ago today.
Arteta made several changes to his starting eleven, with Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino featuring as a World Cup-winning partnership in midfield, while Viktor Gyökeres led the line. William Saliba was on the bench as he made his first return to the Arsenal squad since the Champions League final.
Arsenal started brightly and took the lead after just nine minutes. Gyökeres played an excellent through ball into the path of Noni Madueke, who found himself through on goal before calmly slotting the ball past the Slavia Prague goalkeeper. It was a composed finish from the winger who has proved to be an effective deputy for the injured Bukayo Saka. The Gunners continued to control the game and looked comfortable in possession. They completely nullified Slavia’s attack allowing very little to fall their way.
Arsenal doubled their lead in the 38th minute through Gyökeres. After combining with Merino in the attacking third, the Swedish striker found space inside the penalty area before guiding a composed finish into the far corner. It was a huge moment for Arsenal’s number fourteen which showed how dangerous he can be when he is confident
The hosts returned from the half time break with some fight within them. From the kickoff, David Raya was forced into a save. His first in the entire game. From then onwards, the Gunners failed to keep full control of the game compared to the dominant first half.
Arteta made some changes to try and quiet the game down but the game management was extremely poor from Arsenal. After knocking on the door for some time, the hinges finally flew off and Slavia managed to put the ball in the back of the net. Wiktor Nowak with his seventh goal of the season to breathe some life into the hosts.
The home side pushed hard towards the end but in the end the Gunners held on and secured yet another three points in a Champions League group phase game.
Arsenal will now turn their attention back to domestic action as they prepare to welcome Hull City to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. A first home game since the 2-0 win over Everton which was four games ago.
