Arsenal vs Shakhtar LIVE: Champions League result and reaction as Gunners claim tight victory
Arsenal 1-0 Shakhtar Donetsk: Dmytro Riznyk’s own goal secured the points for the Gunners
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Arsenal earned another three points in the Champions League league phase with a less than comfortable 1-0 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners needed a win after their defeat to Bournemouth last Saturday and their desire to score was evident throughout a dominant first half. They had 22 attacks and created eight attempts with Declan Rice, Gabriel Jesus and Leandro Trossard all coming close.
It was Gabriel Martinelli who broke the deadlock with what proved to be the decisive strike. The Brazilian cut in from the left and struck a fine effort onto the post. The rebounded and hit Shakhtar goalkeeper Dmytro Riznyk on the back before bobbling over the line.
In the second half Arsenal were awarded a penalty for a handball following a VAR check but Leandro Trossard has his effort stopped by Riznyk in some redemption for the keeper. Shakhtar then fought back well and the signs were strong that an equaliser was coming.
It wasn’t to be though with David Raya leaping to the left to make a fine save late in the game to give Arsenal the win.
Relive the action with our live blog below:
Arsenal vs Shakhtar line-ups
Arsenal XI: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Martinelli, Rice, Partey, Trossard; Havertz, Jesus
Shakhtar XI: Riznyk; Konoplia, Bondar, Matviyenko, Pedro Henrique; Kryskiv; Zubkov, Bondarenko, Sudakov, Eguinaldo; Sikan
Ben White sets record straight over whether he ‘hates’ football
Ben White has cleared up confusion over whether he hates football after previously admitting he does not watch it in his downtime.
Footballers are generally presumed to be obssessed with the sport, with many admitting that they spend a lot of their time off watching wahtever game happens to be on TV.
But Arsenal defender White raised eyebrows when he conceded in past interviews that he doesn’t engage with it once he leaves the training ground. The story that he hates the sport also gained traction after he pulled out of the England squad during the 2022 World Cup for personal reasons and went home – amid rumours of a bust-up with Gareth Southgate’s assistant coach Steve Holland, which Southgate always denied.
Ben White sets record straight over whether he ‘hates’ football
Arsenal star White has previously made headlines for suggesting he never watches football once he leaves the training ground
‘Winning Champions League would be amazing'
Arsenal midfielder, Mikel Merino, says that winning the Champions League would be amazing and believes his teammates have the mentality to get over the line.
He said: “I’ve been lucky enough to win a lot of trophies in my career. I know the feeling. It’s something you can’t compare with anything else.
“Knowing what this club is about, and how big winning trophies is, winning the Champions League would be amazing. There is still a long way to go, but we have the basics and we have the mentality.”
Arteta on Champions League nights
Mikel Arteta says that his players always have the ‘desire’ to perform well when they take part in Champions League fixtures and he hopes they will feed off the atmosphere of playing in front of a home crowd.
The Gunners boss said: “The desire is always there, and we always want to play these kind of matches. We know the atmosphere is going to be really good tomorrow night so we will try to feed off that and try to win the game.”
Visitors practise at the Emirates
Fact of the day
Arsenal lost 2-1 at home to Auxerre on this day in 2002 in the Champions League, although the return of the inspirational Robert Pires as a substitute following a long-term knee injury lifted the Gunners’ spirits despite their defeat.
They went on to win their group before exiting after the second group stage but they lifted silverware that season in the form of the FA Cup.
Arsenal vs Shakhtar previous meetings
The two teams have faced each other four times with the honours being shared equally with two wins for the Gunners and two for Shakhtar.
Arsenal have been more prolific in front of goal, but only just, with nine goals scored compared to Shakhtar’s eight. This looks like it may be a top quality fixture.
Here are the previous meetings stats:
Matches 4 Arsenal wins 2 Shakhtar wins 2 Draws 0 Arsenal goals 9 Shakhtar goals 8
Previous Champions League results
Arsenal face Shakhtar Donetsk for the first time in 14 seasons in the league phase of the Champions League.
They were held 0-0 at Atalanta on Matchday 1 before Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka gave the Gunners a statement 2-0 win at home to Paris Saint-Germain in their second fixture.
Meanwhile, their Ukrainian opponents have a single point, drawing 0-0 at Bologna before a 0-3 loss against Atalanta.
How does the Champions League format work in 2024/25?
The pivotal change in Champions League format for this season is the departure from the former group stage system. From the 2024/25 season, 36 clubs will participate in the Champions League league phase (former group stage). Those 36 clubs will participate in a single league competition in which all 36 competing clubs are ranked together.
Under the new format, teams will play eight matches in the new league phase, facing fixtures against eight different teams, playing half of those matches at home and half of them away.
To determine the eight different opponents, the teams will initially be ranked in four seeding pots. Each team will then be drawn to play two opponents from each of these pots, playing one match against a team from each pot at home, and one away.
The top eight sides in the league will qualify automatically for the round of 16, while the teams finishing in 9th to 24th place will compete in a two-legged knock-out phase play-off to secure their path to the last 16 of the competition. Teams that finish 25th or lower will be eliminated, with no access to the Europa League.
Mikel Arteta was asked to play for England
Mikel Arteta says he would have happily played for England but confirmed he was not one of the candidates the FA approached to replace Gareth Southgate.
The Arsenal boss was at Everton in 2010 when he was approached by then-England boss Fabio Capello, who thought Arteta might be eligible to play for the country where he had been resident for five years.
The FA later stated their understanding of Fifa’s eligibility rules would have rendered the Spaniard ineligible. Arteta said: “I was thinking about that the other day.
“I was actually talking to (Arsenal sporting director) Edu about that at lunch. Yeah, I would have done it. I feel very proud about it. I was very realistic, looking at the players Spain had at the time, and how big a challenge I had.
“You need to know your level, that is very important. Look in the mirror. At the end it didn’t happen. But it was good, at least to think about it.
“It was OK. If you cannot do it, you cannot do it. I wasn’t prepared to fight against the world.”
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