Arsenal 1-1 Sporting (3-5 pens): 5 Talking Points as the Gunners crash out on penalties after an enthralling contest | Europa League 2022-23

Arsenal were knocked out of the Europa League following a 5-3 penalty shoot-out defeat to Sporting Club de Portugal (Sporting) after the game ended 1-1 after 120 minutes.

The Gunners entered this contest having won five of their last six games across competitions. Following their 2-2 draw in Lisbon last week, Mikel Arteta's side put in a clinical performance against Fulham as they won 3-0. The Spaniard made a few changes as he rotated his squad for the game.

Sporting, on the other hand, secured a 3-0 win over Boavista in the league, scoring some well-worked goals in the win. They were without skipper Sebastian Coates and Hidemasa Morita for this game as the pair missed out due to an accumulation of yellow cards. Ruben Amorim fielded a competitive lineup for this game.

Arsenal made a decent start to the game and kept possession of the ball as they looked to pass their way through Sporting's defensive lines. However, their momentum suffered in the early stages as defenders Takehiro Tomiyasu and William Saliba were subbed off due to injuries. Despite that, the Gunners grabbed the lead in the 19th minute.

Gabriel Martinelli was played through by Jorginho and attempted a shot which Antonio Adan did well to save. Granit Xhaka pounced on the rebound and smashed it into the net to make it 1-0. Despite making two defensive changes, Arsenal did well to maintain their shape and carried a narrow one-goal lead into the break.

Sporting made a good start to the second half and created some decent chances as they looked to find a way back into the game. They dominated possession in the second period, keeping the ball for 57% of the time. Pedro Goncalves scored a stunning goal after 62 minutes as he saw Aaron Ramsdale off his line and attempted a shot from near the halfway line to make it 1-1.

Both Arteta and Amorim made multiple changes as they looked to snatch a late winner. Despite having decent chances, neither side were able to score again before the 90 minutes came to an end and the game headed to extra-time.

Having saved up his substitutions, Ruben Amorim made four changes over the course of extra-time as he looked to grab a win for the away side. Arteta brought Martin Odegaard on and he made an instant impact, helping Arsenal dominate possession in the final third.

However, neither side was able to find an opening to score from as the game headed into penalties.

Sporting were clinical in the shoot-out, netting all five of their spot-kicks, while the Gunners stumbled on their fourth try as Gabriel Martinelli saw his shot saved by Antonio Adan. The visitors progressed to the quarter-finals having won 5-3 on penalties. On that note, let's take a look at the five talking points from the game.

#5. Arsenal suffered two injury setbacks in the first half

Having made a good start to the game, Arsenal looked confident on the ball and were quick to move the ball around the pitch. However, their momentum was hindered by two injuries, both to defenders.

Tomiyasu was the first player to go down after facing discomfort following a duel with a Sporting defender. He was replaced by Ben White after just nine minutes of play. William Saliba was the second player to go off as he was replaced by Rob Holding after 21 minutes.

Despite a change in personnel, the Gunners managed to carry their slender one-goal lead into the break.

#4. Sporting put in a determined performance despite key absentees

Sporting were without captain Sebastian Coates and midfielder Hidemasa Morita for this game as both picked up yellow cards in the first leg, leading to a suspension due to an accumulation of too many yellow cards.

However, they put in a disciplined display and stuck to their plans for most of the game. They created good chances going forward but were thwarted by a determined Arsenal defense.

#3. Pedro Goncalves scored a scorcher in the second half

After trailing for just over an hour, Sporting leveled the game and the tie thanks to a moment of magic from midfielder Pedro Goncalves.

Arsenal had possession near the halfway line as Jorginho performed a cheeky flick before losing out on a duel. He tackled an opponent but the referee played the advantage as Goncalves drove forward with the ball. Seeing Aaron Ramsdale off his line, he attempted an audacious shot from miles out, only to see it sail into the net.

#2. Neither side could win it late in the second half

Following Goncalves' stunning equalizer for Sporting, the tie was in the balance at 3-3 on aggregate. With over 30 minutes left to play, both sides looked eager to grab a late winner as both managers made multiple changes.

Marcus Edwards had the best chance of the second half as he was played through on goal but fired his shot straight at Ramsdale and it deflected out for a corner. Arsenal and Sporting attempted 11 shots between them but hit the target just thrice as the game went into extra-time.

#1. Sporting overcame Arsenal in a penalty shoot-out

Ruben Amorim seemed to have a trick up his sleeve as he made just one substitution in regulation time, allowing Sporting to make four changes in extra-time. Arteta, too, made one as he brought on club captain Martin Odegaard in place of Vieira. However, neither side were able to grab a go-ahead goal as the game went into penalties.

Sporting converted all five of their spot-kicks while Arsenal stumbled in their fourth attempt from Gabriel Martinelli, that was saved by Adan. They won the game 5-3 on penalties to advance to the quarter-finals.

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