Mikel Merino showed his makeshift striker skills once again in place of the injured Viktor Gyokeres as his double sent Arsenal top of the Champions League via a 3-0 win over Slavia Prague.
Gyokeres’ injury concerned Mikel Arteta but his woes were eased by the Spaniard striking twice in the second half – on a night when Arsenal also entered the defensive history books.
An eighth clean sheet in a row equals a club record for consecutive shutouts set in the 1903/04 season, while this Arsenal team have become the first English side to win their first four games in this competition without conceding since Leeds United in the 1969-70 European Cup.
Those records were under threat in the early stages of a raucous atmosphere. Arsenal were sloppy in possession as the hosts dominated the opening 20 minutes, with Lukas Provod firing their best chance wide from a good area in the opening exchanges.
But Arsenal slowed down the momentum and stepped onto the game. Bukayo Saka was denied three times by goalkeeper Jakub Markovic – before he eventually got his chance – and it came via a corner.
Bukayo Saka fires Arsenal in front from the penalty spot
Saka’s delivery aimed for Gabriel but struck Provod on the arm and VAR helped give a penalty by sending the referee to the monitor. The Arsenal winger dispatched his spot-kick with ease.
From that point, Arsenal knew they would go on to win. They got their second 36 seconds after half-time as Leandro Trossard’s cross found Merino completely unmarked and he had a simple finish.
Merino was at it again as Markovic came and failed to grab Declan Rice’s ball into the box, with the Spaniard getting first to nod home.
Arsenal were home and dry and even brought on Max Dowman, who became the youngest Champions League player at 15 years and 308 days old – with 17-year-old forward Andre Harriman-Annous also making his European debut for the club.
Player ratings
Arsenal: Raya (7); Timber (8), Saliba (8), Gabriel (9), Hincapie (8); Norgaard (7), Rice (8), Nwaneri (7); Saka (8), Merino (9), Trossard (8)
Subs used: Eze (6), Dowman (7), Lewis-Skelly (6), White (6), Harriman-Annous (n/a)
Player of the match: Mikel Merino
Slavia thought they were going to get a shot on target, let alone a goal, when Ben White’s challenge resulted in a penalty being awarded – but replays showed Provod, who had a tough night, handled just before the challenge.
In a week where Arsenal’s injury woes caused concern, their depth and defensive numbers stepped up to help them again. They are top of the Premier League and now the Champions League.
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