Arsenal cruised into the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a 9-3 aggregate win over Dutch side PSV, though were held to a 2-2 draw on Wednesday.
Mikel Arteta had the luxury of resting several key players with one foot already in the last eight, where they will meet either Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid next month. The hosts took the lead on the night inside the opening six minutes as Raheem Sterling cut inside from Tyrell Malacia on the right flank and played in the advancing Oleksandr Zinchenko, who was starting back in midfield against his former side. He shifted the ball onto his stronger left foot and found the far corner with a wonderful curling effort.
PSV brought themselves level, in the second leg at least, with a swift move from an Arsenal goal-kick. Guus Til peeled away off the back of Jorginho and then picked out former Tottenham winger Ivan Perisic, in acres of space vacated by centre-backs Jakub Kiwior and Gabriel Magalhaes, with a perfectly-weighted pass. The Croatian emphatically found the top corner to give the travelling supporters something to shout about.
The Gunners went close to their second of the evening when Mikel Merino’s deft flick in behind ricocheted off the heel of centre-back Adama Nagalo and into the path of Myles Lewis-Skelly, whose toe-poke was diverted onto the outside of the post and behind by goalkeeper Walter Benitez.
Shortly before the break, Arsenal found that go-ahead goal. Sterling was the provider again as he scampered past Malacia to the touchline and delivered a teasing cross into the box, where Declan Rice came crashing in to head home.
Chelsea loanee Sterling was brimming with confidence, but failed to cash in a goal of his when set racing away by Zinchenko on a breakaway from a PSV corner as his attempted dink over Benitez was easily smothered by the stopper.
A drab second half saw PSV pull level again when Jorginho was dispossessed far too easily in midfield and the visitors were able to slice through Arsenal at pace, with Couhaib Driouech lobbing Raya with a superb effort. That proved to be the last meaningful action of the game as Arsenal punched their ticket to Madrid.
GOAL rates Arsenal’s players from the Emirates Stadium…