Sporting 0 – Arsenal 1: RESPONSE!
And that is how you bounce back!
LISBON, PORTUGAL - APRIL 07: Kai Havertz of Arsenal celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Quarter-Final First Leg match between Sporting Clube de Portugal and Arsenal FC at Estadio Jose Alvalade on April 07, 2026 in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Alex Pantling - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images) | UEFA via Getty Images That’s how you bounce back, folks. That’s how you play an away leg.
Arsenal left it late but the goals count the same in the 91st minute as they do in the 1st. Substitutes Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz were the difference in a cagey, low-event match, combining to score a gorgeous goal in second half added time to give the Gunners an important 1-0 lead heading back to London next week. It was Sporting’s first home loss in the Champions League this season.
And they always score at home. Until the Gunners came to town. Arsenal wouldn’t have been in position to win the match if not for David Raya.
He made two outstanding saves, one early in the first half and one late in the second, to keep Sporting out (along with some solid, if unspectacular ones, too). The defense played well, I don’t want to take anything away from them, but even the best defenses need their keeper from time to time. David Raya answered the bell.
Continue to the original source for the full article.