Arsenal fail to hit the target for first time this season in dismal defeat to Porto

Arsenal endured a disheartening 1-0 loss to Porto as Galeno scored a remarkable stoppage-time goal in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash.

Despite this setback, Mikel Arteta’s team will be confident of breaking down the Portuguese side’s defence when they face off in North London next month. However, on Wednesday, the most the Gunners could create in terms of opportunities was a series of corner kicks. Nevertheless, Arsenal’s back line appeared at ease for extended periods of the match.

Yet, their diligent efforts were unravelled in the final minutes of the game when the Porto forward seized possession following an Arsenal mistake and skillfully curved a shot past David Raya from 25 yards out.

Mikel Arteta’s side failed to register a single shot on target for the first time this campaign, totalling seven shots off target including one registered big chance that was missed. Overall they created an expected goals tally of just 0.49 according to SofaScore.

If Arsenal are to advance to the next stage of the Champions League they must drastically improve in attack, particularly the likes of wide forward Gabriel Martinelli who conjured up zero shots, zero chances created and zero successful crosses on Wednesday evening.