BUKA THE NET
Teen star Saka conjures up another priceless goal for Gunners
BUKAYO SAKA rode to the rescue yet again as Arsenal came from behind against Benfica in Rome.
Saka claimed his fifth goal in 12 games to level this last32 tie up after Pizzi scored from the spot.
Arsenal were completely dominant until Emile Smith Rowe’s dopey handball gifted their opponents a secondhalf penalty.
But in-form Saka, 19, dragged them back on terms to carve out another little piece of history for himself.
Since the start of last season, Saka is the youngest Premier League player to reach double figures in goals and assists in all competitions, with 10 and 16 respectively.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta was so pleased with the win over Leeds he named the first unchanged Arsenal team since September 2018.
But the hat-trick hero from the Leeds game, PierreEmerick Aubameyang, missed a sitter when Dani Ceballos split the Benfica defence to play Hector Bellerin through.
His low centre was on a plate for Aubameyang, but the Gunners skipper took his eye off it and somehow prodded wide with the goal gaping.
With Arsenal languishing tenth in the Premier League, this competition looks like their best bet of qualifying for the Champions League.
But after Aubameyang’s miss, Benfica looked comfortable for the rest of the half with the Gunners weaving pretty patterns but lacking a cutting edge.
Granit Xhaka had a few hearts in mouths at the end of the first half too with a dodgy crossfield ball that almost put Benfica in on goal.
Arteta’s men had boasted a 100 per cent record in the group stage, showing exactly the sort of consistency they have lacked in the Premier League.
But for all their possession, Arsenal over-elaborated too often here, delaying too many passes and making too many bad decisions.
And when they did get into good shooting positions, they fluffed their lines, with Saka scuffing wide after some good link-up play with Ceballos. They were made to pay when Smith Rowe gave away a 54th-minute penalty, handling a routine cross.
Bernd Leno’s goal had not been in any danger, but Pizzi beat him from the spot (bottom) and suddenly Arsenal were facing an uphill battle. They responded brilliantly, with Saka slotting home at the far post after good work from Cedric Soares. There was an anxious wait as VAR took a look at it, but Turkish referee Cuneyt Cakir gave the goal.
Leno saved well from Darwin Nunez as Benfica came back, but Aubameyang flashed a shot wide form a great Martin Odegaard pass.
Aubameyang (above) wasted another chance before being withdrawn as Arsenal pressed for a winner, but they could not find it.