Gyökeres and Madueke lift Arsenal past Slavia Prague after late scare

Arsenal beat Slavia Prague 2-1 on Wednesday, November 4, to move into third place in the Champions League league-phase table. Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyökeres scored before half-time, but the visitors needed late defensive interventions to secure their third victory in four matches, according to Sky Sports' match report.

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Gyökeres was involved in both Arsenal goals. Opta Analyst reported that he controlled David Raya's long delivery and released Madueke, who finished from the right side of the penalty area in the ninth minute. The move gave Arsenal an early advantage as they established control of the opening half.

Mikel Merino then had a shot saved and headed another opportunity over before helping create the second goal. In the 38th minute, Arsenal recovered possession high up the pitch and Merino supplied Gyökeres, who finished from the left of the area. Arsenal reached the interval with a two-goal cushion.

Slavia threatened almost immediately after the restart, with Raya stopping an Oskar Kubiak effort. Gabriel Magalhães later cleared a header off the line, while Raya pushed another Kubiak header onto the post. Wiktor Nowak finally scored from close range in the 90th minute, leaving Arsenal to defend a much narrower lead.

Mikel Arteta had made six changes from the team that beat Liverpool 1-0 on Sunday, Sky Sports reported. Speaking to TNT Sports after the match, the Arsenal manager praised the first-half performance but criticised his team's possession losses and clearances after the interval. He said Arsenal had failed to control Slavia's response despite being warned at half-time that the hosts would keep pressing.

Raya also told TNT Sports that Arsenal had opportunities to score more before the break, according to Sky Sports. The goalkeeper acknowledged the difficulty created by Slavia's improved second-half performance and said there were areas to improve despite the victory. For Slavia, Opta recorded a 23rd consecutive European Cup match without a win, equalling the competition record shared by AEK Athens and FCSB.