Sporting CP v Arsenal Live Commentary & Result, 09/03/2023, UEFA Europa League

That's all for today, goodbye!

Both Sporting and Arsenal will be thinking about the chances they missed today, but will be content knowing that the tie is still balanced heading into the second leg at the Emirates next Thursday. Before that game, Sporting host Boavista in the league while Arsenal travel to Fulham.

Arsenal started the game on the front foot and took the lead after Saliba headed past Adan from Vieira's corner in the 22nd minute. Sporting reacted by pressing higher up the pitch and found an equaliser 12 minutes later as Inacio capitalised on poor marking from a corner. The match became very hectic as both Adan and Turner were forced into good saves toward the end of the half, but the scoreline remained 1-1 going into the break. The second period started with Arsenal creating a flurry of chances before Paulinho scored against the run of play. Turner's parried the ball into the striker's path and he tapped home to put Sporting ahead. Arsenal replied quickly after Morita turned the ball into his own net as he tried to intercept Xhaka's pass. Both sides pushed for a late winner but they head into the second leg level at 2-2.

90' + 4' FULL TIME: SPORTING CP 2-2 ARSENAL

90' + 3' SAVE! Saka cuts inside and glides past Goncalves before shooting from outside the box. Adan does well to get his body behind the ball and catch the powerful strike.

90' + 2' Arsenal are attacking in numbers to try and find a late winner but their players are not on the same wavelength at the moment.

90' There will be a minimum of four additional minutes.

I. Fatawu

M. Edwards

89' Fatawu replaces Edwards for the final minutes of this match.

88' Sporting seem to be focusing more on defending their lead rather than looking for a winner now as Arsenal commit more bodies forward.

86' Arsenal are passing the ball around well but it is mostly being done around the halfway line. They need to get the ball further up the pitch by taking a few more risks.

84' Arsenal are struggling to break Sporting down and find another chance to try and win the game. The hosts seem comfortable when defending the Arsenal attacks now.

82' Sporting are playing with far more confidence than the visitors as they press high up the pitch and look to play forward at every opportunity.

80' The substitutions have slowed the pace of the game down, which is helping Sporting a lot more when attacking. Arsenal have lost some of the rhythm they previously had.

78' Sporting enjoy their first spell of possession in the second half as Arsenal defend on the back foot. Diomande tries his luck from distance but doesn't test Turner between the sticks.

Youssef Chermiti

Paulinho

76' Chermiti comes on for Paulinho to lead the Sporting attack.

O. Diomande

Ricardo Esgaio

76' Diomande replaces Esgaio to add more pace to the right side of the defence.

75' The referee resumes play as St Juste is able to continue.

74' St Juste is down and receiving treatment after a heavy challenge from Partey.

73' St Juste goes on a good run into the opposition half before finding Paulinho with a pass. Saliba does well to hook his leg around the attacker and win the ball back for Arsenal.

Gabriel Magalhães

J. Kiwior

71' Kiwior's debut comes to an end as Gabriel replaces the defender.

E. Smith Rowe

R. Nelson

71' Nelson makes way for Smith Rowe in the attack for the away side.

T. Partey

Jorginho

71' Partey comes on for Jorginho in the Arsenal midfield.

Nuno Santos

Trincão

71' Santos replaces Trincao on the left wing for Sporting.

70' Nelson finds himself in a bit of space on the edge of the box and goes for goal. He leans back while shooting and the ball flies over the bar.

68' After a flurry of chances for both sides, Arsenal are slowing the tempo down ever so slightly to try and take control of this match.

66' Arsenal are unbeaten in six previous meetings with Portuguese opponents in the Europa League (W3 D3), including eliminating Benfica in the knockout stages in 2020-21 (4-3 on aggregate in Last 32).

64' WHAT A SAVE! Adan pulls off a brilliant diving save to tip Vieira's header over the bar! Tomiyasu runs to the byline before sending the cross into the path of Vieira. The midfielder gets a lot of power on his header but the goalkeeper is equal to it.

T. Tomiyasu

O. Zinchenko

63' Arsenal make the first substitution of the game as Tomiyasu replaces Zinchenko.

H. Morita

Own Goal

62' GOALL!!! 2-2 ARSENAL! MORITA OWN GOAL!! Arsenal equalise in unlikely fashion as Morita turns the ball past Adan! Xhaka tries to fire the ball into Martinelli, but Morita’s interception goes past his own goalkeeper. What a game!

61' HUGE MISS! Paulinho misses a great chance to double Sporting's lead! The Arsenal backline are caught out again and the striker runs through on goal. He completely misses the target as he loses his balance while shooting.

59' CHANCE! Martinelli goes on an incredible solo run, beating two defenders and the goalkeeper in the process, but St Juste makes a clutch tackle to stop the attacker from scoring into an open net!

H. Morita

Yellow Card

58' Morita receives a yellow card, meaning he will miss the second leg next week.

56' Sporting are trying to increase the pressure on the visitors as they push for a third goal. The fans are also pushing them on by increasing the volume in the stadium.

Paulinho

Goal

55' GOALLL!! 2-1 SPORTING!! PAULINHO!! Paulinho scores to put Sporting ahead against the run of play! Edwards plays Goncalves into a good position to shoot and Turner makes a good save but parries it straight into the path of Paulinho. The striker taps home for one of his easiest goals of the season.

54' Arsenal are in control of possession to start this second period and are trying to take more risks in the final third. Sporting are still a big threat on the counter-attack.

52' CHANCE! Arsenal work the ball well down the left wing before Zinchenko sends a cross into the six-yard box. Martinelli wins the header but fails to hit the target!

50' WIDE! Vieira shoots first-time from outside the box after a good lay-off by Martinelli. The ball beats Adan but goes just wide of the right post!

49' SAVE! Martinelli is through on goal after a clever pass from Zinchenko, but Adan rushes out to close the angle and make a good save to keep the scoreline level.

47' CHANCE! The ball falls to Morita on the edge of the box after Turner punches away a cross from Trincao. The midfielder shoots with the outside of his right foot, but Turner catches the strike with ease.

46' Paulinho gets the second half underway for Sporting!

Both Sporting and Arsenal will be somewhat happy with their first-half performances. The hosts will be pleased with how quickly they responded but not how they started. Arsenal do look like the stronger team but have been prone to errors in this game.

45' + 4' HALF-TIME: SPORTING CP 1-1 ARSENAL

45' + 3' MISTAKE! Turner makes a big mistake when trying to play out from the back as he passes the ball straight to Paulinho! The striker is left frustrated as the other Sporting players in the box do not react quickly enough to score. Turner is left off the hook.

45' + 1' Vieira sends in a cross from the free-kick but fails to find any of his team-mates as Sporting clear their lines.

45' There will be a minimum of four additional minutes.

45' Nelson cuts inside and drives toward the box before St Juste brings him down. Arsenal have a good opportunity to get a cross into the box.

Gabriel Martinelli

Yellow Card

43' Martinelli receives a yellow card after impeding Adan while the goalkeeper had the ball in his hands.

42' SAVE! Adan makes a good save on his line to stop Xhaka from scoring! Nelson sends in a looping cross to the far post and Xhaka nods in the ball into the ground. The goalkeeper gets across his goal quickly to make the save.

41' Neither side are willing to drop the tempo of this match as both teams want to try and head into the half-time break with a lead.

39' SAVE! Edwards shoots with power from outside the box but Turner dives low to his left as this game is very end-to-end now.

38' Vieira plays a lofted pass to Xhaka at the far post, and the midfielder tries to head the ball to Martinelli in the middle but Coates makes an acrobatic clearance.

36' Arsenal are trying to respond quickly to Sporting's equaliser but the home side are doing well to sit deep and soak up the pressure.

M. Edwards

Assist

34' Edwards whips the ball in with pace and precision from his corner and allows Inacio to just flick the ball into the net. Great pass from the winger.

Gonçalo Inácio

Goal

34' GOALL!!! 1-1 SPORTING!! INACIO!! Inacio equalises for Sporting with a glancing header past Turner! The goalkeeper comes out at first but then goes back to his line. This causes some confusion that allows Inacio to win the header in the six-yard box. Game on!

33' SAVE! Paulinho does well to hold the ball up against Saliba and allow his team-mates to get forward. Inacio eventually has the opportunity to shoot and Turner makes a good diving save to keep the effort out.

31' Sporting are trying to press higher up the pitch to put Arsenal under more pressure and try find an equaliser. It is working at the moment as Turner and Zinchenko give the ball away in quick succession.

29' Arsenal have a record of W5, D0, L0 when scoring the opening goal in the Europa League this season.

27' SAVE! Zinchenko takes the free-kick but hits his effort straight into the wall. The rebound comes back to him and this time his powerful strike goes past the wall, forcing a good save from Adan.

25' Vieira wins a free-kick in a very dangerous position for Arsenal after Coates brings him down outside the box. The defender escapes a second booking.

O. Zinchenko

Yellow Card

23' Zinchenko goes into the referee's book after a tussle with Coates.

S. Coates

Yellow Card

22' Coates receives a yellow card after an altercation with Zinchenko.

Fábio Vieira

Assist

22' Vieira is playing very well for Arsenal and picks up a good assist after his pinpoint corner finds Saliba on the six-yard box. The defender makes no mistake with his header as the visitors take the lead.

W. Saliba

Goal

22' GOALLL!!! 1-0 ARSENAL!! SALIBA!! Arsenal take the lead after a brilliant header from Saliba! Vieira sends in a good cross from the corner and Saliba gets free from his marker before heading the ball past Adan.

20' Vieira is in a bit of pain after Inacio steps onto his foot when trying to make a tackle. The midfielder is picking up good positions on the right side to help Arsenal get the ball forward.

18' Saliba draws a foul off Paulinho to relieve some of the pressure the striker was applying. Arsenal are being very patient with their build-up play.

16' Edwards does well to win a corner for Sporting after he forces Xhaka into making a tackle just outside the box. He takes a short corner before Esgaio tries to send in the cross, but Saka blocks the pass.

14' Arsenal are certainly on the front foot in this game as Saka and Vieira are dictating the play in the final third. But the visitors still need to be wary of a potential counter-attack.

12' Vieira sends in an in-swinging corner for Arsenal and aims for Kiwior at the front post, but Sporting do well to win the first header and then clear the danger away.

10' Paulinho is receiving some treatment after a collision with Saliba. The striker is able to continue as the referee resumes play.

8' The contrast in tactics is clear to see from the start here in this match. Sporting are playing very direct as they look to find their front players with long passes while Arsenal try to play through their opponents.

6' BIG CHANCE! Goncalves is through on goal after Jorginho doesn't spot his run in behind. He cuts onto his right foot but completely misses the target! Huge opportunity gone for the home side.

5' Nelson receives the ball on the left wing and takes Esgaio on. He dribbles past the defender and sends in a cross, which Martinelli cannot direct toward the goal.

3' Arsenal are controlling the game early on here but Sporting are not letting them progress the ball up the pitch easily. The hosts look very organised when defending.

1' Arsenal get the game underway at the Estadio Jose Alvalade!

The players are making their way out of the tunnel and onto the pitch!

Sporting have progressed from each of their previous six ties against English sides in the knockout stages of the UEFA Cup/Europa League, with all six coming against different teams.

Amorim makes four changes from his Sporting’s win over Portimonense as St Juste, Reis, Trincao, and Paulinho all start. Arteta makes six changes to his starting 11 as Turner, White, Jorginho, Xhaka, Nelson, and Kiwior enter the starting lineup. Kiwior is making his debut for the club.

SUBS: Aaron Ramsdale; James Hillson, Thomas Partey, Gabriel Magalhaes, Emile Smith Rowe, Rob Holding, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Mauro Bandeira, Charles Sagoe Junior, Matt Smith, Reuell Walters.

Arsenal (4-3-3): Matt Turner; Ben White, William Saliba, Jakub Kiwior, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Fabio Vieira, Jorginho, Granit Xhaka; Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Reiss Nelson.

SUBS: Franco Israel, Nuno Santos, Luis Neto, Rochina, Issahaku Fatawu, Ousmane Diomande, Mateo Tanlongo, Arthur Gomes, Jovane Cabral, Youssef Chermiti, Mateus Fernandes, Dario Essugo.

Sporting CP (3-4-3): Antonio Adan; Jeremiah St. Juste, Sebastian Coates, Goncalo Inacio; Ricardo Esgaio, Hidemasa Morita, Pedro Goncalves, Matheus Reis; Trincao, Paulinho, Marcus Edwards.

Following a dip in form at the start of February, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal have bounced back with four consecutive wins coming into this game. Confidence inside the Gunners’ dressing room will be sky-high after Reiss Nelson’s 98th-minute winner against Bournemouth in their most recent match. Arsenal’s only defeat in the group stage came away to PSV as they topped Group A with 15 points.

After finishing third in their Champions League group, Sporting beat Midtjylland 5-1 across two legs to qualify for this round. Although they are fourth in the Liga Portugal standings, Sporting have won their last four competitive matches and lost only once since the start of February. Ruben Amorim’s side did well against Arsenal’s north London rivals Tottenham earlier this season, picking up four points across both matches.

Hello and welcome to the Europa League round of 16 first-leg fixture between Sporting CP and Arsenal.

Sporting CP v Arsenal Live Commentary, 09/03/2023

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