Shock stat shows how lucky Arsenal were to scrape past Porto and reach first Champions League quarter-final in 14 years
ARSENAL may have got through to the Champions League quarter-finals – but they left their shooting boots at home against Porto.
The Gunners claimed a dramatic 4-2 penalty shootout victory after David Raya’s double save allowed them to scrape through to Friday’s last-eight draw.
Spot-kicks were needed to settle the tie after Leandro Trossard’s first-half strike made it 1-1 on aggregate.
But Mikel Arteta’s side were limited to only four shots on target across both games.
And all of them came on Tuesday’s tense affair at the Emirates – just two on target attempts in each half.
After failing to challenge keeper Diogo Costa three weeks ago, Arsenal were again frustrated by a defensive Porto for long periods.
It took a world-class pass from Martin Odegaard to finally put them on the scoreboard after 130 minutes of trying.
That – and Odegaard’s disallowed goal – were the only times Arsenal were able to force the ball past the keeper across two games.
One fan wrote: “Arsenal had the same number of shots on target in the penalty shoot-out (4), as they did in 180 minutes over the two legs against Porto (not including extra time).”
While another tweeted: “Over 210 minutes of football, free-scoring Arsenal managed to get 4 shots on target against Porto. All 4 came tonight at home. Sergio Conceicao, ladies & gents.”
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This is a far cry from their free-scoring domestic form, which has left them top of the Premier League.
The Gunners have netted an incredible 34 goals during a run of eight successive league wins – which amounts to an average of almost 4.5 goals per game.
Their current league tally stands at 68 – the most in the division and the most Arsenal have ever had at this stage of a campaign in the Premier League era, even more than the Invincibles season.
And yet, less than three months ago, boss Mikel Arteta was under serious pressure to finally splash out on an elite No9 to take the North London club to the next level.
Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Trossard, Kai Havertz, Declan Rice and Odegaard have all stood up in that time, hitting 24 goals between them since January 1.
But fans noticed Saka’s quiet night against Wendell on Tuesday – although the England international did get the better of him in the shoot-out.
Arsenal had been knocked out at the last-16 stage in their last seven appearances in the competition and are through to their first quarter in 14 years.
The Gunners will be grateful their meeting with Chelsea initially scheduled for this weekend has been postponed.
The Blues will face Championship leaders Leicester in the FA Cup quarter-finals on Sunday.