SWEET LAST SIXTEEN
King David is spot on as pen pals hold their nerve
WHEN you’ve waited 14 years to reach a Champions League quarter-final, what’s an extra two hours or so?
And no one was complaining at the Emirates last night as Arsenal scraped into the last eight of Europe’s elite competition for the first time since 2010.
It took a penalty shootout to keep their dream alive – and two superb saves from David Raya to deny Porto’s Wendell and Galeno and send the crowd delirious.
It was the first penalty shootout in the competition since 2016.
Leandro Trossard had given Arsenal a first-half lead on the night to make it 1-1 overall, but that second goal proved elusive in 120 minutes of frenzied action.
Porto refused to buckle but Arsenal prevailed on a night of gripping drama.
It was Arsenal’s first knockout game in the Champions League since 2017 while the Gunners had lost seven last-16 ties on the spin since beating Porto in 2010.
Mikel Arteta made just one change and recalled Raya in goal but was without the influential Gabriel Martinelli.
And the home side almost made the perfect start when Ben White went close with a looping header inside the first four minutes.
Porto’s mission was to time waste and slow the game down, by foul means of fair.
But there was nothing Nico Gonzalez could do to stop Bukayo Saka from speeding past him and almost forcing Diogo Costa to spill his shot into his own goal.
Porto, though, looked dangerous when they chose to be and Evanilson fired wide before demanding a smart save from Raya.
Pepe produced a crucial header to deflect White’s cross away from Kai Havertz close to the goal. But Arsenal’s patience was rewarded approaching half-time when Martin Odegaard’s sublime pass set up Trossard, who beat Costa with a clinical finish.
You could feel the tension leave the building – but it would return with a vengance after the break.
Arteta was then booked for his reaction to an Odegaard goal being ruled out for a shirt tug by Havertz on Pepe.
Facing Pepe can be about as appealing as a hurricane on a honeymoon, because his hardened face is as familiar as our doormats.
But the 41-year-old was turning back the clock to do whatever it took to keep his side in the competition and it took a sharp save from Raya to deny Francisco Conceicao when Porto finally decided to play some football.
Despite chances coming and going at both ends in extra time, no one could find a winner and penalties were needed.
And in the lottery of the shootout, Arsenal hit the jackpot to book a place in the last eight at last.
ARSENAL (4-3-3): Raya 7; White 7, Saliba 6, Gabriel 7, Kiwior 7 (Zinchenko 105); ODEGAARD 9, Rice 8, Jorginho 7 (Jesus 83, 6); Saka 7, Havertz 7, Trossard 8 (Nketiah 105). PORTO (4-2-3-1): Costa 7; Mario 7 (Sanchez 86, 6), Pepe 8, Da Silva 7, Wendell 8; Varela 7 (Grujic 90, 6), Gonzalez 6 (Eustaquio 101); Conceicao 7 (Borges 101), Cossa 7, Galeno 6; Evanilson 7 (Taremi 88, 6).
REFEREE: Clement Turpin (Fra) 8.