FULL TIME: Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 Arsenal
There’s enough time for Coric to miss a one on one with Ospina - Gabriel with the mistake to let him in - and then it’s all over! Dinamo have their first win over Premier League opposition! It’s much deserved, too: they were the better side throughout. Arsenal’s 18th consecutive group campaign suffers a cold start. A chance to get things going in a fortnight at home against Olympiacos, who were battered 3-0 by Bayern Munich tonight. But in the meantime, Olivier Giroud has plenty of time to think on.
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90 min +4: Campbell fouls Ademi on the halfway line. He’s very lucky to escape a second booking. It’s a chance for Dinamo to work that clock, baby. Ademi takes his time to get up.
90 min +3: Sanchez works his way down the left and wins a corner off Benkovic. The ball’s looped into the mixer, but Gabriel’s header clears the bar by many, many yards. The home crowd are beginning to make some noise again.
90 min +2: Arsenal are forced to faff around in their own half.
90 min +1: Soudani brings down Sanchez on the left. The free kick’s hoicked into the box. Koscielny is penalised for the lightest of shoves amid a melee.
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90 min: Rog is booked for a fairly cynical lunge on Campbell, keeping Arsenal penned deep in their own territory for a while. There will be five added minutes.
89 min: Koscielny earns a cheap free kick down the left wing. A free kick that’s as good as a corner. Arsenal load the box. Cazorla stands over the ball. But the delivery fails to beat the first man. That delivery, under the circumstances, is dreadful. But Arsenal are at least making the hosts work for their victory. Can they deny them it?
88 min: And now Pjaca is replaced by Benkovic.
87 min: Campbell is booked for bringing down the pacy Pjaca.
86 min: You wouldn’t put huge sums of money on this ending up 2-1. Who’d score the next, though, is anyone’s guess. Rog romps down the middle and slides the ball down the inside-right channel for Soudani, who shapes to shoot but is denied by a stunning slide tackle by Gabriel.
85 min: Campbell clumsily brings down Pivaric on the left. The free kick’s looped long. Sigali is free, six yards out. His header goes straight at Ospina. He should have scored. Though the flag, incorrectly, goes up, so it doesn’t matter. But still.
84 min: Walcott is making a huge difference. Debuchy rakes a pass down the right, and Walcott nearly nips in. He earns a throw down that wing. Arsenal work the ball around this way and that. Coquelin overhits a ball meant for Campbell down the right. More relief for the home side, who are beginning to question previous certainties now.
82 min: Antolic is replaced by Rog.
81 min: Well that’s silenced a previously bouncing stadium. Campbell bustles down the right, and scoops a ball inside for Walcott, who doesn’t quite connect properly as he rushes into the area. Eduardo gathers. Dinamo, previously comfortable, suddenly look a little shaky.
GOAL! Dinamo Zagreb 2-1 Arsenal (Walcott 79)
From absolutely nothing! Sanchez flicks a pass down the left, with the hosts asleep. Walcott is sent scuttling clear down the channel. He opens up his body, and guides a lovely finish into the bottom left. Arsenal, against all odds, are right back in this! And Walcott doesn’t half like this stadium!
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78 min: Antolic is sent scampering down the right. With Arsenal light at the back, he guides a low ball inside for Soudani, who would be clear on goal had Ospina not raced out to intercept with his feet. He then clatters into Coric, fairly according to the ref, before clearing his lines properly.
75 min: Sanchez brings a high ball down with a gentle wave of his boot. Then whacks it straight into Antolic’s arse. That just about sums up Arsenal’s night. Flashes of quality with little end product.
73 min: Fernandes is replaced by Coric, 18, the great young Croatian hope. Better than Boban, Modric and Prosinecki is how he’s being billed. No pressure, then, son!
71 min: Campbell plays a cute slide-rule pass down the inside-right channel. Walcott is sprung clear into the area. He’s a smidgen offside. So close. He clatters into Eduardo, as the keeper comes off his line. Or perhaps he took Walcott’s shot straight in the coupon. Either way, he’s getting balls of cotton wool shoved up his beak. Looks like he’ll be OK, but this is an opportunity for Dinamo to manage the clock a little. Professional football, and all that.
68 min: Pinto is sent scampering into acres down the right. His cross isn’t particularly good, but it’s headed out lamely by Koscielny, and Pinto can have another ramble. He chips weakly into Ospina’s arms from a dangerous position. Arsenal can be thankful for Pinto’s profligacy there. They can’t keep giving up chances like that.
67 min: ... and now the ball’s over the bar, Sanchez looking to whip the ball over the wall and into the top-left corner, getting plenty of up but not enough down.
66 min: Pinto is booked for clattering Sanchez as the Arsenal man makes his way across the front of the Dinamo box, right to left. Free kick, just to the left of the D, a couple of yards further out. Sanchez and Ozil over it ...
64 min: Arsenal make a triple substitution. Gibbs, Arteta and Oxlade-Chamberlain off; Coquelin, Campbell and Walcott on.
62 min: Fernandes and Pinto combine delightfully down the right wing. Pinto digs a cross out from near the corner flag. Ospina is bundled over the middle as he comes to claim, the pressure released. Arsenal, having worked their way back into contention, are struggling again in the wake of the Fernandes goal.
60 min: The hosts stroke it around the back awhile. Time to soak up the atmosphere. It is blistering right now. Arsenal are in all sorts of bother. Dinamo will never get a better chance to beat Premier League opposition.
GOAL! Dinamo Zagreb 2-0 Arsenal (Fernandes 58)
... the corner, from the left, is whipped to the near post. Fernandes makes up for giving up that golden chance by planting his head on the ball, and sending it flying into the top left! Not sure what Koscielny was doing there, but competing for that ball wasn’t it.
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57 min: Soudani dances in from the right, George Best style. The ball is shuttled left for Fernandes, who is in space but allows his shot to be deflected over the bar. But no matter, because ...
56 min: Ozil exchanges passes with Oxlade-Chamberlain down the right. He’s clear in the area! And offside again. That’s a very close decision, but again, probably right.
54 min: Ozil has the ball in the net, but it won’t stand. Sanchez powers down the middle. He whips a pass out right for Oxlade-Chamberlain, who creams a first-time ball back down the middle to release Ozil. Ozil threads a shot into the bottom-right corner from the edge of the box. A delicious finish, though Eduardo may well have stopped playing, the flag having gone up for offside. It looked miles off at first, not quite so obvious on the replay. But just about the right decision. Arsenal are vastly improved since the break.
51 min: Ozil is really putting himself about right now. He triangulates his way down the left, and is very nearly sent clear into the area by a crisp pass from Gibbs. But instead of striding into the box to shoot, he attempts an over-elaborate backflick. Bad decision there, but Ozil’s a bundle of energy right now.
48 min: Oxlade-Chamberlain is cynically blocked down the right by Antolic, who is booked. Ozil whips a low free kick into the danger zone but it’s hacked clear. Arsenal are soon coming back at Dinamo, though, down the left through Gibbs, who flicks inside for Ozil. A chance to equalise? Not quite, there’s little time, and he can’t get a shot away. Eduardo gets in the road, and the danger’s gone. But that’s better from Arsenal. It couldn’t get much worse.
47 min: Pinto has a punt from distance. The ball balloons off Koscielny and out for a corner on the right. Machado, on the penalty spot, heads the ball on for Soudani, who hits the post from a couple of yards! He prepares to make amends by banging home the rebound, but Sigali gets there first and squirts the ball wide left! What an astonishing double miss! Arsenal were all over the shop, and should be two down.
And we're off again!
It’s going to be fascinating to see Arsenal attempt to fight their way out of this pickle. The monumentally daft Giroud really has put his team-mates in a tight spot, because Dinamo were the better team when it was 11v11. No changes as the hosts get the game under way again. Incidentally, it’s goalless between Olympiacos and Bayern Munich. “To be fair, if I looked like Giroud, I’d spend a fair portion of my time in front of the mirror having a good, long look,” is a fair point well made by Matt Dony.
Half-time entertainment - and possibly a full-time score prediction - courtesy of Steven Hughes:
HALF TIME: Dinamo Zagreb 1-0 Arsenal
The Gunners can have no complaints. Dinamo have been by far the better side, and fully deserve their lead. As for Olivier Giroud, dear oh dear. This should be one hell of a second half. No flipping!
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44 min: Replays of the goal suggest the ball did indeed fly in off poor old Oxlade-Chamberlain. It wasn’t his fault. He was on Pivaric’s shoulder, putting the pressure on, and the Dinamo full-back’s shot pinballed off the keeper, back onto him and into the net. Impossible to get out of the way.
42 min: The resulting free kick comes to nothing, a fairly dismal dig from distance by Antolic. If Dinamo had their shooting boots on, Arsenal would be in even more trouble right now. It’s bad enough as it is, mind.
Giroud sent off!
40 min: He’s clattered clumsily from behind by Giroud! A second yellow - the first having been awarded for crass stupidity - and the striker’s sent packing! That’s one of the most pointless red cards you’ll see. Once Giroud’s finished in the early bath, he should spend a bit of time in front of the mirror having a good, long look.
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39 min: Pjaca is unceremoniously upended by Arteta down the inside-right channel. Dinamo make an awful hash of the free kick, Antolic mistiming the free kick into the box. But the ball breaks off Gibbs and back to Pinto. And as he takes a touch ...
37 min: Machado makes good down the right and whips a dangerous cross towards the near post. Ospina and Koscielny make a meal of mopping up the mess, but they manage it after a fashion.
35 min: Gibbs finds a little space down the left and crosses deep. The ball loops off Pinto and out for a corner on the right. Cazorla takes, and it’s headed clear at the near post by Fernandes. There’s been no real danger for Dinamo since the goal, but Arsenal are at least making territorial inroads now.
34 min: Ademi steals the ball off Sanchez in the middle, and bombs into the Arsenal half. He lays off to Soudani, who soon concedes possession. Now it’s Gabriel’s turn to batter a clearance upfield in the no-nonsense style.
32 min: Sanchez, his toes twinkling, dances in from the right and very nearly makes himself space to shoot in the area. Sigali is quickly on hand to close him down and hammer the ball miles from danger. A bit better from Arsenal, who have taken their sweet time to clear their heads since letting in the opening goal.
31 min: Debuchy, who has arguably been Arsenal’s best player so far, makes himself known down the right. He claims to have been illegally bundled to the floor near the area by Fernandes, but doesn’t get the decision. Unlike Giroud, he decides against waving his arms around in semaphore shapes.
29 min: Fernandes is in acres down the left. Arsenal are light at the back, and he’s got Pjaca and Soudani on his inside. The pass is misplaced, allowing Koscielny to usher the ball back to Ospina. The visitors are suddenly looking rather ragged.
26 min: This stadium is bouncing now. Arsenal can’t say they weren’t warned. Dinamo have been attacking with elan.
GOAL! Dinamo Zagreb 1-0 Arsenal (Oxlade-Chamberlain 24 og)
Machado, in a central position 25 yards out, backflicks to the left for Soudani, who hesitates to buy time, then slides a delicious pass down the left channel to release Pivaric into the box. Pivaric, having timed his run to perfection, hits his shot into Ospina, who has come out to smother well. The luck deserts Arsenal: the ball pinballs off Ospina, back onto the back-tracking Oxlade-Chamberlain’s shins, then into the left-hand portion of the net. A scrappy end to a lovely move.
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23 min: And now he’s in the book. This is bloody daft. He’s climbing all over the back of Antolic as the two contest a high ball. The referee blows for a common-or-garden foul. And Giroud blows up in the expansive style, waving his arms like billy-o. Eh? What’s the point? A booking it is.
22 min: Giroud flaps his arm into Ademi’s face. It’s really nothing, but then again you’ve seen players penalised for that sort of carry-on. He gets away with it, though.
21 min: Soudani busies himself down the left wing, twisting and turning and eventually laying off inside for Antolic, who is rushing in with purpose. Three rugby points. He had time and space there. Arsenal can’t keep giving up those chances. It’ll only take one sweet connection.
19 min: The set piece comes to nothing, a poor shot from distance by Debuchy. He started the whole passage of play off with that glorious pass down the wing, so it’s hard to be too critical.
18 min: What a miss by Giroud! A gorgeous spray down the right wing by Debucchy to release Oxlade-Chamberlain. The Ox reaches the byline, and whips a low one to the near post. The ball clanks off Giroud’s head, and hits the bottom of the right-hand post. Giroud should bury the rebound from a couple of yards, but it clanks off his body, into the body of the desperately sprawling Eduardo, and out for a corner.
17 min: A bit of space for Giroud down the inside-left channel, Sanchez having supplied him from the wing. He’s about to shoot, but Taravel slides in to concede a corner. Cazorla’s set piece looks for Sanchez, who tries to rise and meet the ball on the penalty spot. But it’s a little bit too high. It’ll be a big surprise if this game stays goalless for any length of time.
15 min: Pivaric, Fernandes and Antolic combine well down the left. Dinamo are enjoying themselves down this flank. Antolic retrieves what looks like a lost cause by the corner segment, and pulls back low and hard into the area. Fortunately for Arsenal, there are no dark blue shirts in the centre - they’re all on the left flank! - and Gabriel can mop up.
13 min: Sanchez clips a pass down the left wing for Giroud. The striker nearly reaches it on the edge of the box, but Eduardo comes off his line to kick clear. This is a very entertaining game, both teams pinging it around in a very attractive style.
11 min: This Pjaca looks highly decent. Pivaric cuts in from the left and feeds the young man with a pass shifted inside. Pjaca again drops a shoulder, shimmies to the right, and once again lumps a wild one high and wide right from 20 yards. But he’s not afraid to run at Arsenal, and he’s causing a little bother. If he gets his shooting boots on too, Arsenal better watch out.
10 min: The second corner comes in from the right. Ozil. It’s a wicked whip along the corridor of uncertainty, and Eduardo comes out to flap. The ball clanks into Sanchez, on the edge of the six-yard box. He can’t control, and Dinamo blooter clear.
9 min: Giroud bustles down the left and wins a corner off Sigali. Cazorla takes. And he finds the head of Giroud, on the penalty spot. Giroud winds his neck back and powers a stunning header towards the top right. It’s whistling in, but Eduardo fingertips it out for another corner. Great football all round.
7 min: Pjaca picks up possession down the inside left, drops a shoulder, shifts the ball inside, and strides into space. He’s got time to shoot, 25 yards out, but lashes an awfully wild effort miles wide and right. But that was a good little burst from a young player who has only recently broken into the Croatian national team. The crowd enjoyed that.
6 min: Giroud flicks a clever reverse pass down the right for Debuchy, who reaches the byline and stands one up into the middle. Sanchez rises to meet with his head, six yards out, but he’s penalised for climbing.
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4 min: The Dinamo captain Antolic looks to power down the inside-left flank, but a one-two with Fernandes doesn’t quite come off. The home side struggling to retain possession right now. Arsenal already looking confident and comfortable.
3 min: Gibbs embarks on a speedy run down the left, and very nearly breaks into the area. Not quite. Arsenal looking to press down both flanks. They’re passing it around at speed. Manchester City take note.
And we're off!
Arsenal get the ball rolling. They pass it around the back awhile, getting a good old feel of the ball. Then a long hoick down the right for Oxlade-Chamberlain to chase. For a second it looks like he might scoot into the box, but the space in front of him is closed down quickly enough. The away side on the front foot immediately, though.
The teams are out! Dinamo are in their first-choice blue shirts, a state of affairs which allows Arsenal to wear their famous red and white. A classic aesthetic, and no mistake. The Dinamo shirts are rather fetching actually, a deep, dark blue with a yellow flash across the shoulder. Shades of Wimbledon, always a good look. A rare old atmosphere in Zagreb, both sets of fans giving it plenty. The official Uefa bastardisation of Handel parps from the PA speakers. Hands are shaken, coins are tossed. The ball will be moving around with some force in a minute or two!
Making small talk to pass the time until kick off: The nights are fair drawing in, eh?
Arsenal make six changes from the starting XI against Stoke City last weekend. One eye on the Chelsea game on Saturday, no doubt. Only Gabriel, Laurent Koscielny, Santi Cazorla, Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez survive the cull, though Mikel Arteta, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Olivier Giroud all came off the bench in that 2-0 victory at the Emirates. Theo Walcott may be a little disappointed not to be starting: not only did he score against Stoke, he also helped himself to a hat-trick at this very stadium when England beat Croatia 4-1 in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers back in 2008.
2008!
Theo Walcott’s 26 years old!!!
Where does the time go, kids? Meanwhile the home team have to do without defensive midfielder Gonçalo Santos, who is suspended after being sent off in the play-off second leg against Skenderbeu.
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The teams
Dinamo Zagreb: Eduardo, Ivo Pinto, Sigali, Taravel, Pivaric, Paulo Machado, Ademi, Antolic, Soudani, Pjaca, Fernandes.
Subs: Jezina, Henriquez, Hodzic, Coric, Benkovic, Rog, Matel.
Arsenal: Ospina, Debuchy, Koscielny, Gabriel, Gibbs, Arteta, Cazorla, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ozil, Sanchez, Giroud.
Subs: Cech, Chambers, Monreal, Flamini, Coquelin, Campbell, Walcott.
Referee: Ovidiu Hategan (Romania)
Ce sont les meilleures équipes! Es sind die allerbesten Mannschaften! The main event!
Arsenal’s 18th successive group stage campaign begins this evening. Last time round, they made it to the knockout stages for the 15th time in a row, and are expected, along with group favourites Bayern Munich, to get through yet again this season. They’ll certainly be hopeful of a positive result against Dinamo Zagreb tonight: the Croatian champions, who are back after a two-year absence, have never made it out of the groups in their four previous attempts. They’ve never won against Premier League opponents, losing the last six matches against English teams. Arsenal meanwhile have won seven and lost only two of their last 11 away fixtures in this competition. And they won 3-0 here back in 2006. All signs on Arsene’s 8-ball point to yes.
Then again, Dinamo are on quite a run. They’re 41 matches unbeaten in all competitions since a 1-0 loss to Astra Giurgiu in last season’s Europa League. Last season they became the first team to make it through a Prva Liga campaign unbeaten. Dinamo’s Algerian striker El Arbi Hilal Soudani has scored six goals in his last five games for club and country. Dinamo have won their last three games 4-1, 3-0 and 4-0. And perhaps Arsenal will have one eye on Saturday’s crunch Premier League fixture at Chelsea. So you never can tell. It’s on!
Kick off: 8.45pm at the Stadion Maksimir in Zagreb, 7.45pm back in London.
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