Girona 1-2 Arsenal: Ethan Nwaneri shines as Gunners ease into Champions League last 16
Girona 1-2 Arsenal: Ethan Nwaneri shines as Gunners ease into Champions League last 16
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Arsenal cruised into the last 16 of the Champions League without any last-gasp drama as they finished an impressive league phase campaign with a 2-1 comeback win over Girona. The Gunners had to fight back from behind in Catalonia after some bizarre goalkeeping from debutant Neto that allowed Arnaut Danjuma to score the opener, but Jorginho’s penalty and a brilliant Ethan Nwaneri strike secured a deserved victory for Mikel Arteta’s side - their sixth out of eight in Europe so far this season.
It was a third win in a row across all competitions for Arsenal despite Raheem Sterling’s late miss from the spot as they bounced back from a blip to boost confidence ahead of Sunday’s huge showdown at home to Manchester City in the Premier League, which is followed by a trip to Newcastle for the deciding second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final tie.
They ended the inaugural league phase of the revamped Champions League behind Liverpool and Barcelona in third place, with one of AC Milan, Feyenoord, Juventus or PSV Eindhoven awaiting in the last 16 following the conclusion of the two-legged knockout play-off round.
Arsenal - showing seven changes from Saturday’s dramatic 1-0 win at Wolves, with goalkeeper David Raya not fit to be involved - thought they were ahead early at the quaint Estadi Montilivi, where they were cheered on by only 500 away fans, as Sterling played in Riccardo Calafiori to shoot through the legs of Pau Lopez, but Saturday’s Molineux match-winner was denied by the offside flag.
