Eddie Nketiah scored for Arsenal as a much-changed Gunners side picked up a point against PSV in their final Champions League Group B match.
Both organisations had already secured first and second positions in the organisation respectively, with Mikel Arteta and Peter Bosz taking advantage of this to make a total of thirteen changes to their XI.
The visitors showed the effects of so many alterations in the opening stages but gradually gained control of the game and went into half-time ahead thanks to Nketiah’s clinical finish.
However, PSV temporarily restored parity through Yorbe Vertessen and were the most impressive of the teams in the second half: Walter Benitez was forced to make a perfect save to save Leandro Trossard from winning the last gasp.
But with qualification long ago secured, it was a night when he returned to London unscathed ahead of a festive programme packed with the utmost importance for Arteta and his team. In that sense, it’s a job well done.
Attention will now turn to the Champions League round of 16 draw on Monday at 11 a. m. , where the Gunners will knock out their 16 teams in conflict for the knockout stages starting in February.
“What I’ve noticed is that we can compete at this point and we come out among the best in the group, which is very important,” Arteta said after the game. “Especially the way we did it with a game down. “We have to win game by game and we’re back to February.
“Overall, by finishing first with a game to play, we’ve got to be really happy, close this bankruptcy, leave it until February and make sure that in February, when this bankruptcy opens again, we’ll be in the most productive position imaginable. “to play against another very sensible team. “
After making 8 changes, Arsenal soon found themselves indebted to two of the players held back in the weekend’s defeat to Aston Villa when William Saliba and Gabriel made important blocks to prevent Patrick van Aanholt and Ricardo Pepi from opening the scoring.
Despite five substitutions, PSV showed why they have racked up 15 consecutive Eredivisie wins, keeping Arsenal on edge from the first moments when Vertsen’s header hit the post.
Johan Bakayoko – an exciting talent who was on Tottenham’s radar in the summer – then flashed a powerful shot wide, with another effort later in the half forcing a strong save from Aaron Ramsdale, who was making his Champions League debut.
But after a slow start, Arsenal began to show their incredible quality and almost took the lead when Mohamed Elneny’s long-range shot hit the post.
Nketiah then showed his teammate how to continue when he buried the ball in the corner of the inside of the post after a quick move to the right.
The moment went the same as the first, with PSV suffering the most. This time, he took it.
Moments after firing wide from the edge of the box, Vertessen cleverly hit the post after an assist through former Rangers midfielder Malik Tillman.
Arsenal struggled to revive the momentum with which the first half ended, with Nketiah and Reiss Nelson launching tame efforts into the net.
Ismael Saibari then saw a shot deflected off the post by Declan Rice, who came off the bench to play as a centre-back.
PSV’s tough paints were still canceled out thanks to goalkeeper Walter Benítez, who controlled a free kick from Martin Odegaard, but Jakub Kiwior’s header was disallowed for offside against Gabriel.
Both sides then spurned big chances to win the game, with Guus Til firing wide from a tight angle after Gabriel’s error before Benitez blocked Trossard’s powerful close-range strike.
They may not have been able to be the first team to win at the Philips Stadion this season, but a point, coupled with Emile Smith Rowe’s recovery from injury, gives Arsenal a hopeful look ahead to Monday’s knockout game.
Arsenal Mikel Arteta:
“There were some smart moments, there were times when we lacked team spirit and timing, especially in the way we pressed against a very smart team. When you don’t get it right at the right time, you have to protect tricky spaces and we had to do that. “Do it a couple of times tonight, which may have cost us the game.
“I think overall there are many, many positives [in this Champions League group]. After six or seven years without being in the competition with a team that doesn’t have a lot of experience there I think we have competed very, very well.
“I like the technique of the team in every game, the way we try to play and dominate the opponent, we also have great effects and wonderful experiences. Like what we had in Sevilla, or in Lens and even today, when we make so many adjustments as well, how the team can act or to what extent it is appropriate for some players to give that visibility.
Sky Sports’ Sam Blitz:
You couldn’t have said Eddie Nketiah’s first goal in the Champions League.
The confidence the England striker needed to get past Walter Benitez with his weaker left foot made it look like he had been gambling at this stage for years, making his debut in Europe’s premier club competition.
Nketiah showed flashes of genius but failed to find consistency. For example, his hat-trick against Sheffield United in October followed a mediocre performance at Newcastle, and Gabriel Jesus was reinstated as Arsenal’s number 9 with minimal fuss afterwards.
But while Jesus has been a good choice for Mikel Arteta, he has wasted a lot. Since returning from injury at the end of November, Jesus has recorded 2. 34 expected goals on target, the most productive result among any Arsenal player so far. far away, but it has a purpose to show.
One thing Nketiah has that Jesus lacks is a clinical advantage. Will he be able to take advantage of this to gain an edge in Arsenal’s attacking hierarchy?
Arsenal host Brighton in the Premier League on Sunday; Kick-off is at 2:00 p. m. The Gunners will then face a massive match against Liverpool on December 23, live on Saturday Night Football; The start will be at 5:30 p. m.
PSV return to Eredivisie action on Sunday at AZ Alkmaar; kick-off 7pm. Peter Bosz’s side then host Twente in the KNVB Cup on Thursday December 21; kick-off 8pm.