Viktor Gyokeres scored one goal and created another as Arsenal maintained their unbeaten start to the Champions League group stage with a 2-1 win at Slavia Prague.
The Sweden striker was restored to the starting line-up by Mikel Arteta, who made six changes from the side that defeated Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday. Gyokeres replaced Kai Havertz as Arsenal’s central striker.
He made an immediate impact, helping create the opening goal in the ninth minute. Gyokeres hooked the ball over and behind the Slavia Prague defence, allowing Noni Madueke to run through and finish with confidence.
Arsenal doubled their advantage before half-time, with Gyokeres completing the scoring move himself. He exchanged passes with Mikel Merino before curling an excellent effort beyond the goalkeeper and in off the post.
The visitors were less convincing after the interval as Slavia Prague increased the pressure. David Raya was called into action almost immediately, producing a good save to keep out Oskar Kubiak’s effort from the edge of the penalty area.
Arsenal were then forced to defend their lead on the line. Gabriel Magalhaes cleared away a header from Mojmir Chytil after a corner, denying the hosts a route back into the game.
Slavia Prague eventually reduced the deficit in the 90th minute when Wiktor Nowak scored from close range. Arsenal held on, however, to secure a fourth unbeaten result in their opening four games of this season’s group stage.
The Gunners had won all of their matches at this stage of the competition last season. They are now third in the table, behind Paris St-Germain and Real Madrid.
Arteta praised his players’ character after the final whistle, despite admitting their performance had fallen well below the standards he expects.
“This is a team that has huge spirit, huge conviction and if you give them something, they will grab it,” said Arteta.
“We were extremely far from our standards. We fell short on everything, from the basics to every concept we discussed, and in everything we tried to avoid in the second half.
“Very far from the standards we expect from each other, but we found a way to hold on to the result and win the game.”
