Sporting Lisbon defender Matheus Reis was not pleased with Arsenal’s set-play antics during Thursday’s 2-2 UEFA Europa League last-16 first leg draw in Portugal, speaking to O Jogo.
If any moment summed up the fine margins at the very highest level, it was this. Sporting had just taken the lead for the first time in the game with 55 minutes on the clock; Paulinho tapping in the rebound from a Matt Turner parry.
Mere moments later, the Sporting striker missed a glorious chance to make it 3-1. And, just to compound the misery of the home supporters at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, Arsenal would then go down the other end to equalise, Hidemasa Morita bizarrely deflecting a Granit Xhaka cross into his own net.
That ‘what might have been’ moment was not the only moment of frustration for Ruben Amorim’s Primeira Liga giants. Left-back Reis believes William Saliba’s first-half opener should not have stood after being held back inside the penalty area by Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Arsenal draw 2-2 with Sporting Lisbon in Europa League
“I was grabbed by Zinchenko,” Reis fumes. “I don’t know why they didn’t talk about it in VAR. In all set pieces, they were always stopping and grabbing. In the second half, the same thing.
“I didn’t understand what was going on in the referee’s head. But I hope that changes in the second game.”
The return leg will take place at the Emirates Stadium next Thursday. Win, and Arsenal will go into the pot for the quarter-finals, where they could conceivably be pitted against a Manchester United side who rebounded from that Liverpool mauling with a superb 4-1 win over Real Betis at Old Trafford.
“When you concede two poor goals like we did today away from home in Europe, it’s very difficult to get the positive result that we expected,” Arteta told the Arsenal website after a hard fought draw on the road.
“I think the game had different phases, especially because we gave too many balls away. Too many simple balls in our own half. We gave them hope. We gave them the capacity to go into transition moments that they are good at.
“(There are) some positives because we showed a lot of resilience to get back in the game. But we need to defend our box much better. We have to be (better) in the return leg to beat them.”
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