Arsenal 1-0 FC Porto: The Debrief

Arsenal advance to the quarterfinals of the Champions League

That was a miserable but wonderful match to watch.

Every buzz of my phone or watch was a signal of potential dread or ecstasy, with most as false alarms that just strove to raise my heart rate. By the end of the match, I was getting all of the notifications that my watch was mad and worried about me for the stress it was picking up.

I wanted Arsenal and Arteta to change and do something but if you ask me what could be done that was an obvious change I would have come up blank once Gabriel Jesus was on the field, but that was just what the stress did in this match.

If I needed a reminder of how much this match meant, how my body told me exactly how much I wanted to advance in this match. It is a wonderful torture to be back in the business end of the knock-out matches of this competition.

Arsenal 1-0 FC Porto: The Graphics

Arsenal 1-0 FC Porto: The Debrief

1.1 - Arsenal’s xG In this match, this is just the 8th time this season that Arsenal have been held to 1.1 or lower. Porto have done it twice, allowing 1.7 total xG between the two legs.

13 - Shots for Arsenal

1 - Big chance in this match for Arsenal (83’ Jesus). This was the only big chance that Arsenal had over both legs

0.08 - Arsenal’s average xG per shot

This match was a struggle for Arsenal.

I came away from this match with a very high opinion of the defensive structure and ability to disrupt a match from Porto. I don’t like the way they broke up the game with their falling down and looking for fouls but I do have a begrudging respect for how well they executed the tactic.

40 - Fouls committed combined between the two legs for Arsenal, 22 in the first match and 18 in this match. These are the two highest totals of any matches this season, the next highest is 15 and well above the 9.8 that Arsenal average in matches not against Porto.

They again mucked the game up and made it very hard to find rhythm and space to progress the ball.

41 - Progressive passes for Arsenal in this match, even with the extra 30 minutes Arsenal just beat the average value of 39 progressive passes.

Getting into the final third was still a struggle. Even with Jorginho in the team and a pitch that was in better shape Arsenal didn’t have the territorial dominance that I would have expected. This season Arsenal have entered the final third on half of their possession sequences, in this match they were held to below their average.

Porto, made it so Arsenal couldn’t generate high starts with their press, creating just 8 in this match. While also doing fairly well to hold on to the ball when they did come into possession. They had an almost equal share of long spells of possession to Arsenal, having 10 sequences of 7+ passes to Arsenal’s 11 and doing well to keep from pressure mounting to where it felt like a goal was inevitable for long stretches.

I am incredibly happy to see the back of this team. It was a great learning experience for Arsenal on how to deal with a pesky and well-drilled team in a high-stakes match but I don’t want any more of that if I had the choice.

The David Raya bet pays off

2 - Penalties saved, not including getting a finger tip to a third penalty that just squeezed in.

11% - Raya’s penalty save rate coming into this (not counting shootouts) according to transfermarkt, he had saved 4 of 36 penalties faced.

0 - Goals allowed, saving all 3 shots on target faced (0.3 post shot xG)

1 - Cross claimed

5 - Sweeper actions outside his box

75% - Passing completion percentage, 102% efficiency.

96% - Passing completion on passes under 30 yards 27 of 28.

844 - Yards of progressive passing completed, leading all players

Arsenal made a major call this season with their goalkeepers. Aaron Ramsdale was and still is a fan favorite and was a solidly above-average goalkeeper. He had weaknesses and lapses but even the most ardent critics (I’d put myself in this camp) would probably concede it didn’t seem to be the largest hole in Arsenal’s squad.

Mikel Arteta and his management team had a different view and saw an opportunity to make a marginal improvement with the long-coveted David Raya being available and with a team that was willing to play ball to make the deal work.

That has paid off for him and the team.

Raya hasn’t been perfect, with the shot-stopping still lagging where I hoped it might be but he looks like a perfect tactical fit. That came out perfectly in one of the biggest nights of Arsenal’s seasons. He looked totally comfortable behind Arsenal’s high line, he commanded his box when Porto did have the ball and pressured Arsenal, and was a willing and pivotal part of helping to build attacks.

He then became a hero in the shootout. Such a good day and something well-deserved for Raya, and the coaching staff.

Odegaard is a star

This graphic is for regular time only

29 - Passes Completed

78% - Passing completion percentage

105% - Pass Efficiency

8 - Progressive Passes

7 - Box Entry Pass

2 - Key Passes, including the assist to tie the overall match

2 - Shots, not including one that should have put Arsenal ahead

2 - Dribbles Completed

4 - Progressive Carries

9 - Touches in the box

2 - Tackles

1 - Interceptions

0.46 - Goal Probability Added

3.26 - Fields Gained with ball progression

This was a tough night for Arsenal. Porto for the second time held Arsenal to some of their lowest attacking numbers and really clamped down on the key players.

The one player who looked like he was rising above, often through sheer willpower was the Captain.

He stepped up big when the team needed him the most, and nearly provided the goal and the assist to put Arsenal through. He ended up just providing the assist to keep Arsenal alive, running his socks off and cooly dispatching his penalty instead. A good day at the office.