Tomas Holes headed home in the dying moments to deny Arsenal first leg win over Slavia Prague in the Europa League quarter-finals.
After a goalless first half, Arsenal’s record-signing forward Nicolas Pepe came off the bench to break the deadlock in the 86th minute; it looked like a win for Mikel Arteta’s men. Arsenal failed to see the game through and Holes’ back-post header means Arteta’s side have to work harder against the 2019-20 Czech champions in a week’s time.
Arsenal are currently 10th in the Premier League. The Europa League represents their most realistic chance of securing a Champions League spot next season. The second leg in Prague takes place next Thursday, April 15.
Elsewhere, Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes have placed Manchester United one leg inside the Europa League semi finals following a 2-0 win away at Granada.
Rashford put United ahead when he superbly collected Victor Lindelof’s long pass and slid a finish past home goalkeeper Rui Silva. The team doubled its lead in the 90th minute when Fernandes squeezed a penalty past Silva after Yan Brice fouled the Portuguese midfielder in the 18-yard box. The second leg shall take place next Thursday at Old Trafford.
With the goal, Rashford became the fourth Premier League player to reach 20 goals in all competitions this season after Harry Kane (29), Mohamed Salah (27) and Bruno Fernandes (24).