A thrilling end to the match brought a controversial moment! Did Arsenal lose the advantage of a penalty kick?

The opening day of this year’s Champions League quarter-finals offered a goal shootout. At the Emirates Stadium, the fans witnessed four goals, and at the very end of the match Arsenal claimed the advantage of a penalty kick. Was the current Premier League leader deprived of a big advantage?

Arsenal are having a great season. In the Premier League we can find it in the leading position, however, it has only one point lead on the third Manchester City. Mikel Arteta’s charges are facing a very interesting title fight in the last seven rounds.

However, the Gunners are also thinking of success on the European stage. They are in the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time since the 2009-10 season, when they fell to Barcelona after 2-2 and 1-4 results.

This season, they beat Porto in the eighth round, but it was a penalty shootout that decided their progress. The subsequent quarter-final draw decided Arsenal’s double-header with Bayern Munich.

The opening match at the Emirates Stadium eventually produced a goalless draw which ended in a 2-2 draw. Arsenal were the better team for the vast majority of the match, but were brought down by individual errors that their opponents were able to capitalise on.

A very controversial moment took place in the fifth minute of the second half, when the home side claimed a penalty kick after contact between Bukay Saka and Manuel Neuer. However, due to the set meter, referee Glenn Nyberg did not whistle it.

The replay showed that the 22-year-old English winger went too far for the penalty and jumped into the visiting goalkeeper himself. Arsenal legend Ian Wright is also convinced that the referee’s verdict was correct.

The return leg at the Allianz Arena will take place on Wednesday 17 April. The Bavarian team has prepared a good starting position for it. Thomas Tuchel and his charges will still try to salvage an otherwise not very successful season by reaching the semi-finals of the most prestigious club competition.

Source: UEFA, X – Ian Wright