Kai Havertz scores, Arsenal struggle to draw with Leverkusen in Champions League round of 16 first leg

Arsenal had to work extremely hard to secure a 1-1 draw away at Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg on the early morning of March 12.

Arsenal escape danger in the 89th minute on German soil

A late penalty goal by Kai Havertz helped the London representative avoid defeat and maintain hope ahead of the return leg.

Immediately after the kick-off whistle, Arsenal proactively pushed their formation forward to exert pressure on the opponent's half. Just in the second minute, Robert Andrich received a yellow card after pulling down Viktor Gyökeres, demonstrating the visitors' attacking intent. During the early period, the relentless pressing tempo caused Leverkusen significant difficulties in building play from the back.

However, the home team gradually regained balance and began organizing dangerous attacking moves. In the forward line, young talent Christian Kofane was active with numerous wide-ranging movements. The 19-year-old striker attempted a long-range shot but could not beat goalkeeper David Raya. Shortly after, Vietnamese-origin starlet Ibrahim Maza also unleashed a shot from outside the penalty area, but the ball narrowly missed the post.

On the other side, Arsenal created the most dangerous chance of the first half. From a swift counterattack, Gabriel Martinelli unleashed a powerful shot that hit the crossbar of the goal guarded by Janis Blaswich. Meanwhile, the visitors' defense also had to operate at full capacity. Center-back Gabriel Magalhães made a timely sliding tackle to block a dangerous shot by Jarell Quansah.

Another notable situation came from Piero Hincapié when this defender had a chance to shoot from a tight angle facing his former club, but still could not beat Raya. The remainder of the first half unfolded at a fairly tense pace as both teams fiercely contested possession in the midfield area.

The turning point of the match occurred right at the start of the second half. Martin Terrier's header forced Raya to showcase his saving skills, but from the subsequent corner, Andrich rose high to head the ball into Arsenal's net, putting Leverkusen ahead just minutes after the second half began.

After conceding, manager Mikel Arteta immediately instructed his players to accelerate their attack. He introduced Noni Madueke to replace Bukayo Saka to enhance creativity in the forward line. Nevertheless, Leverkusen maintained a fairly tight defensive organization for most of the second half. One of Arsenal's rare opportunities came from Jurriën Timber's header, but the ball flew over the bar.

The drama escalated to a climax in the final minutes of the match. Malik Tillman fouled Madueke inside the penalty area, and the referee awarded Arsenal a penalty. From the 11-meter spot, Havertz remained calm to beat Blaswich, even though the Leverkusen goalkeeper guessed the shot direction correctly.

The valuable equalizer allowed Arsenal to leave Germany with a 1-1 draw, thereby retaining a psychological advantage before the return leg at home. Simultaneously, this result also extended "The Gunners" unbeaten streak to 12 matches across all competitions, while Leverkusen had to accept their fourth consecutive draw. The rematch in London therefore promises to be extremely tense, with progression opportunities still evenly shared between both teams.

Goals: Robert Andrich (46') - Kai Havertz (89' pen)

Lineups

Leverkusen(3-4-2-1): Blaswich, Andrich, Quansah, Tapsoba, Poku, Garcia, Palacios (Ezequiel Fernandez 82'), Grimaldo, Maza (Malik Tillman 74'), Terrier (Jonas Hofmann 82'), Kofane

Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Raya, Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie, Rice, Zubimendi, Eze (Gabriel Jesus 82'), Saka (Noni Madueke 60'), Martinelli, Gyokeres (Kai Havertz 74')