Arsenal squandered a golden opportunity to book their place in the Champions League last 16 as Anderlecht stormed back from three goals down to rescue a stunning 3-3 draw on Tuesday
Arsenals Polish-born German striker Lukas Podolski (R) looks at the ball after Anderlecht scored their third goal to equalise during the UEFA Champions League Group D football match between Arsenal and Anderlecht at the Emirates Stadium in north London. P
London: Arsenal squandered a golden opportunity to book their place in the Champions League last 16 as Anderlecht stormed back from three goals down to rescue a stunning 3-3 draw on Tuesday. Arsene Wenger-s side were on course to qualify for the knockout stage of Europe-s elite club competition for the 15th successive season after Mikel Arteta-s penalty and fine strikes from Alexis Sanchez and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain put them in complete control by the 58th minute.
Arsenal-s Polish-born German striker Lukas Podolski R looks at the ball after Anderlecht scored their third goal to equalise during the UEFA Champions League Group D football match between Arsenal and Anderlecht at the Emirates Stadium in north London. Pic/AFP
But the Gunners- creaky defence was brutally exposed by Anderlecht in a remarkable finale that saw the Belgians score three times in the last 29 minutes to stun the Emirates Stadium into silence. Anthony Vanden Borre sparked the incredible revival with a tap-in from an offside position and he then netted a penalty before Aleksandar Mitrovic-s stoppage-time header completed the heroic comeback.
ADVERTISEMENT
"We had some bad luck, the first goal for Anderlecht was offside but we had a lack of concentration and thought the game was won," Wenger said. "Overall we were poor defensively from the first to the last minute. "Am I angry or disappointed? Both." Anderlecht boss Besnik Hasi added: "We come from a small league but we have shown for the second time against Arsenal that we can compete against these big teams."
The north Londoners -- now five points behind Group D leaders Borussia Dortmund -- are likely to have to settle for second place and a tougher draw in the last 16, assuming they can guarantee qualification in their final two matches against Dortmund and Galatasaray. Hasi-s side must have feared it wouldn-t be their night when they arrived at the stadium less than an hour before kick-off after the team bus was stuck in heavy traffic.
But they showed no signs of being affected in the opening moments and Dennis Praet fired in a low strike that deflected off Per Mertesacker and flashed just past a post with Gunners goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny wrong-footed. Anderlecht had outplayed Arsenal for long periods despite losing in Belgium two weeks ago and they threatened again, with Sacha Kljestan skipping through the hosts- defence to force Szczesny into a good save.
Gung-ho approach
But the Belgians- gung-ho approach also exposed their leaky defence to more pressure than was wise. And Wenger-s side exploited the holes in the Anderlecht rearguard to take the lead in the 25th minute. Sanchez, in imperious form, slipped a perfectly-weighted pass through to Danny Welbeck and the Arsenal striker-s run was impeded by Chancel Mbemba, who fell backwards into his opponent and knocked him to the turf.
There was little malice in Mbemba-s challenge but French referee Clement Turpin felt it was worthy of a penalty and Arsenal captain Arteta stepped up to calmly chip the spot-kick into the roof of the net. With the momentum now firmly in their favour, Arsenal swept forward again and doubled their advantage four minutes later.
When Sanchez-s free-kick cannoned into the Anderlecht wall, it seemed the chance had been squandered, but the Chile winger-s response to his initial miscue was thrilling as he seized on the looping rebound to smash a blistering volley through the now splintered wall and past goalkeeper Silvio Proto. It was a fitting way to mark Arsenal-s 500th goal since moving to the Emirates and Oxlade-Chamberlain capped his vibrant display with the 501st in the 58th minute.
The England winger took possession from Sanchez-s tenacious tackle and accelerated into the penalty area to plant a fine finish into the far corner. Yet Vanden Borre reduced the deficit three minutes later when his tap in from Andy Kawaya-s cross was allowed to stand even though the defender was clearly offside.
Arsenal-s always-vulnerable defence was all at sea and Vanden Borre struck again with a 73rd-minute penalty after Nacho Monreal hauled down Mitrovic. Anderlecht could scent blood now and they poured forward in a frantic climax, which reached a crescendo when Andy Najar whipped over a 90th-minute cross and Mitrovic got in front of Mertesacker to bury a diving header beyond Szczesny.