As Lens secured a comeback victory in the French team’s first Champions League home game in 20 years, Arsenal was defeated for the first time this season.
Gabriel Jesus’ early goal gave the Gunners, who had gone 11 games without losing, the lead in northern France. However, they were fought back by Adrien Thomasson’s equalizer following David Raya’s errant cross.
Bukayo Saka’s limping off only five days before Arsenal’s tantalizing Premier League match against Manchester City this Sunday gave the Gunners a serious injury concern, according to sportheadline.co.uk.
With little over 20 minutes remaining, Sepe Wahi guided home the game-winning goal for Lens, punishing the Gunners for their lack of focus. With more over 20 minutes left, Sepe Wahi curls the winning shot home.
For Arsenal, near calls from Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard, Reiss Nelson, and Emile Smith Rowe led manager Mikel Arteta to declare that the game was lost in both boxes.
“It’s true we didn’t generate enough threat in the final third,” Arteta said to TNT Sport. “Like on many other instances, we failed to create enough openings. And it was all about the boxes, exactly like in the PSV game. In addition, we fell short in the box defense to secure the victory.
Mikel Arteta expressed doubt over Bukayo Saka’s readiness to play against Manchester City on Sunday after the winger hurt himself during Arsenal’s 2-1 loss to Lens.
With this result, the Gunners are currently in second position in the group, one point ahead of Sevilla, who drew with PSV Eindhoven.
How delayed Arsenal dillied and dallied
From the side that defeated Bournemouth 4-0 on Saturday, Arsenal made two adjustments. Ben White was replaced by Takehiro Tomiyasu at right-back, and Eddie Nketiah was replaced by Leandro Trossard up front.
The early chances belonged to the home team. Kevin Danso missed with a shot, and Thomasson’s off-target header forced Raya to leave his line.
However, Arsenal capitalized from a Lens error as Saka intercepted an errant pass and instantly set up Jesus for a shot. After deviating slightly off his feet, the Brazilian striker sent a shot into the far corner.
The Gunners almost pounced briefly after that strike quieted the home supporters. Goalkeeper Brice Samba denied Havertz’s first-time effort after Oleksandr Zinchenko had set him clear in the area.
Thanks to some careless play from the visitors, Thomasson missed another opportunity for Lens but made no mistakes a little while after.
Deiver Machado successfully intercepted Raya’s clearance, and Thomasson ultimately gained possession of the ball and curled a precise finish past the Arsenal goalie.
Then, a moment Arsenal did not want occurred: Saka hobbled off the field while clutching his leg and was replaced by Fabio Vieira. The Gunners’ chances of scoring a second goal were hindered, and their sole opportunity from that point until halftime came via Jesus’ half-chance.
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After bursting out of the gate in the second half, Arsenal almost scored an immediate second when Trossard was put in down the left, but Samba saved the winger’s low drive after it ricocheted off a defender.
Salis Abdul Samed curled into Raya’s side netting after superb work from Thomasson on the right, but the Saka-less Arsenal struggled to get into gear and Lens gave them a warning before their game-winning goal.
Samba stopped Takehiro Tomiyasu’s low effort from Martin Odegaard’s corner, and two minutes later, Lens scored the game’s winning goal as a result.
Wing-back The French team took the lead after Wahi was set up by Przemyslaw Frankowsk on the outskirts of the area, sending the crowd at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis into a frenzy.
Odegaard, Havertz, and Zinchenko were then replaced by Mikel Arteta, maybe with an eye toward Sunday’s game against Premier League champions City. However, the replacements came close to scoring an equalizer.
Before Nelson had what appeared to be a definite goal stopped on the line by Lens defender Jonathan Gradit, Smith Rowe sent a 25-yard shot straight at Samba’s hands.
It was undoubtedly [a difficult game]. I congratulate Lens. They are a genuinely excellent team, as we all witnessed, and they presented a formidable opponent in a setting of high expectations.
“We achieved the hardest thing by scoring the first goal, and we completely controlled the game. But then they managed to score, and the game was back on.
Errors occur; it’s a part of football. They’ll still be there in some way. With Leo, we had a fantastic opportunity right after the final third. Two or three of our opportunities were quite good.
“It was a significant night for us, and [we need to] learn from it. We were unable to achieve the desired outcome. Many lessons will be learned from it.
