Arsenal suffered a turbulent night in the Champions League as Bukayo Saka hobbled off during defeat in Lens.
Bad weather grounded Mikel Arteta and his players at Luton Airport for five hours on Monday as their journey to France was delayed.
Now their hopes of avoiding a bumpy ride in qualifying for the knockout stages have also suffered a setback after Lens came from behind to record a 2-1 victory at a rocking Stade Bollaert-Delelis.
Gabriel Jesus thought he had given the Gunners lift-off when he broke the deadlock with his 22nd Champions League goal.
However, hopes of an easy night veered off course as an error from goalkeeper David Raya led to Adrien Thomasson levelling before Saka limped off hurt for the third time in nine days.
Elye Wahi then hit the winner with 20 minutes to go to open up Group B as Arsenal now face a tricky trip to Europa League holders Sevilla later in the month.
This was a first home Champions League game in 21 years for Lens and their fans were not going to miss the opportunity to enjoy the occasion.
A huge tifo, flares and a wall of sound greeted kick-off and their team certainly set about Arsenal in the opening exchanges, with Kevin Danso firing just wide after collecting a corner.
Despite the rapid start from the hosts, Arsenal struck first through Jesus’ tidy finish into the bottom corner after Saka had been gifted the ball by a sloppy backpass.
Heads up and onto the next. pic.twitter.com/AViFZiCgiq
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 3, 2023
The noise inside the stadium remained despite Lens falling behind and the vociferous support were rewarded with an equaliser.
Raya, stood outside his box, looked to play a ball into midfield but the Arsenal goalkeeper’s pass was intercepted and moments later he was beaten by a fine curling strike from Thomasson to level the contest.
For the third game in a row, Saka then limped off injured having gone down off the ball.
He recovered after coming off late against Tottenham and Bournemouth but was replaced by Fabio Vieira here with the visit of Manchester City just five days away.
Leandro Trossard forced a smart save out of Brice Samba in the Lens goal at the start of the second-half as Arsenal looked to retake the lead.
Worth the wait ❤️💛@RCLens || #UCL pic.twitter.com/jFWnread4u
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 3, 2023
The Ligue 1 side, though, started to take control of the game and Abdul Samed’s shot into the side-netting just after the interval was a warning for the visitors.
With the game opening up, Takehiro Tomiyasu had a great chance to turn home a corner but could only shoot straight at Mendy.
Lens would take the lead through Wahi, whose sweeping finish past Raya came after another break down the right flank.
Arteta responded with an immediate triple substitution as Ben White replaced Oleksandr Zinchenko with the ineffectual pair of Trossard and Kai Havertz taken off for Emile Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson.
Despite the alterations, Samba was largely untroubled for the remainder of the night, punching clear a Smith Rowe drive with Arsenal unable to create a clearcut chance to rescue a point.
[(Ferencvaros) Strength]: 1. Ferencvaros are motivated to win this home game and take the lead in advancing.2. Cadu scored a goal in the last game, once helping the team tie the game.3. Ferencvaros received 3 wins and 1 loss in the last 4 home games, revealing outstanding home performances.4. Ferencvaros scored 11 goals and conceded 3 in the last 5 games, boasting excellent attack and solid defens...
[(Gwangju FC) Strength]: 1. The first leg of the Semi-finals will see Gwangju FC play at home first. They hope to grab the advantage, with full motivation.2. Gwangju FC forward Reis scored twice in the last game, being in good form.3. Gwangju FC performed well and scored a 2-0 win over Daejeon Hana Citizen in hte last game, thus getting back on the winning ways.4. AH market provided home team a -1...
[(FC Machida Zelvia) Strength]: 1. In the last league game, Korean internationals Oh Se Hun and Na Sang Ho both scored in open play, showing decent performances.2. This game is FC Machida Zelvia's fourth consecutive home game, which is in favor of them.3. FC Machida Zelvia won 3-0 over Cerezo Osaka in the last league game, securing a 10-game winning streak across all competitions.4. FC Machida Zel...
[(Crvena Zvezda) Strength]: 1. Crvena Zvezda vow to win this home game in order to grab the advancing advantage, with full motivation.2. Aleksandar Katai performed very well in the last domestic league game. He scored a hat-trick in a win for the team.3. Crvena Zvezda defeated Mladost Lucani 4-1 in the last domestic league game. They achieved 7 wins and 1 draw in the last 8 games, being in red-hot...
[(Sao Paulo FC) Strength]: 1. Sao Paulo FC drew with Atletico Nacional in the first leg on the road. They will advance to the next round if they win this round at home, indicating full motivation to win.2. Sao Paulo FC signed Serie A team Atalanta BC captain Rafael Toloi recently. He is expected to make his debut in this match.3. Sao Paulo FC drew 2-2 with Sport Club do Recife in the last league g...
[(Chengdu Rongcheng FC) Strength]: 1. Chengdu Rongcheng FC drew 0-0 with Qingdao Hainiu F.C. in the last Chinese Super League, ending their winning streak. However, the team were unbeaten with 5 wins and 1 draw in the last 6 games, showing commendable performances.2. Chengdu Rongcheng FC scored 12 goals in the last 5 home games, revealing outstanding attack at home.3. Chengdu Rongcheng FC are now ...
[(Sanfrecce Hiroshima) Strength]: 1. Sanfrecce Hiroshima have achieved 14 wins, 4 draws and 8 losses in the league so far this season. They have scored 30 goals and conceded 18 goals in 26 league matches, and currently rank 5th in the league standings. The team will play at home in this game and have a strong desire to win.2. Naoto Arai, the main defender of Sanfrecce Hiroshima, has performed stea...
[(Rangers F.C.) Strength]: 1. Rangers F.C. beat Alloa Athletic 4-2 in the last game, avoiding a losing streak. They have a good adjusting ability.2. Rangers F.C. eliminated FC Viktoria Plzen 4-2 on aggregate in the last round of the cup and advanced.3. Rangers F.C. scored 10 goals in the last 5 games with a stable offense, averaging 2 goals per game.4. Rangers F.C. kept unbeaten in the last 5 home...
[(Real Madrid CF) Strength]: 1. Real Madrid CF finished 2nd last season and hope to regain the La Liga title this season. This summer, the team boosted their squad strength. Thus, they are motivated to secure the first win in this opener at home.2. Real Madrid CF's two veteran stalwarts, Modric and Lucas Vazquez, have departed one after another. During the offseason, the club signed Trent Alexande...
Let's start our Daily Laugh today. What should we do, guys? EPL 1st Wek !! Sesko vs Gyokeres lastnight They must communicate using sign language… Arsenal fans for the 6th year in a row Chelsea dropped points ? Chelsea really do sign anyone these days...Please stay tuned on Daily Laugh. There will be more fun tomorrow!(Credit: Justtoonit, originaltrollfootball, FootballLaughss, NoContextChe1)...
- 1 Brentford Agree Deal to Sign Dango Ouattara From Bournemouth
- 2 TIPS - Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas VS Liga Deportiva Universitaria
- 3 TIPS - Villarreal VS Real Oviedo
- 4 ngland cricket legend’s granddaughter stuns in bikini
- 5 Lamela explains retirement decision: It started 11 years ago...
- 6 Estevao Willian set for 'key' Chelsea role after debut vs Palace
- 7 TIPS - Club Necaxa VS Club Leon
- 8 Emotional Arne Slot admits he had wanted to bring late Diogo Jota on as a substitute in Liverpool's dramatic victory over Bournemouth
- 9 Benjamin Sesko vs Viktor Gyokeres: Man Utd-Arsenal showdown sets early stage for big-money No.9s to show the Premier League what they can offer
- 10 TIPS - Cambuur Leeuwarden VS FC Oss