Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Sporting CP: Lifeless Gunners Display Enough to Reach Semifinals

There was little excitement at the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal booked a final spot.

Arsenal fought their way into the last four. | Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC/Getty Images

Arsenal squeezed into the semifinals of the Champions League following an unconvincing performance in their goalless draw with Sporting CP on Wednesday night.

A 1–0 victory during the first leg in Lisbon offered Arsenal some welcome breathing room as pressure grows following three defeats from their last four matches, but the Gunners were unable to add to their advantage during a drab first half at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal found themselves caught between protecting their narrow cushion and taking the game to Sporting after the restart, ultimately opting for the former. That decision led to a tense finale during a match which produced just two shots on target, but the Gunners held firm to secure a crucial one-goal aggregate victory.

Progression sets up a tantalizing semifinal tie with Atlético Madrid, who overcame Barcelona at the quarterfinal stage earlier this week.

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One Thing We Can’t Ignore

Mikel Arteta’s side were uninspiring once more. | Vince Mignott/DeFodi Images/DeFodi/Getty Images

The prevailing takeaway from recent defeats has been Arsenal’s stagnant attacking play. Without the crutch of set pieces, the Gunners have seriously struggled to carve open their adversaries, and their second leg against Sporting proved no different.

A deafening pregame atmosphere was quickly muted by yet another lifeless display from Mikel Arteta’s men, who conjured a measly 0.28 expected goals during a first half in which their visitors forged the best chance—Geny Catamo striking the post with a powerful volley. Any hopes of a major reaction from the Bournemouth defeat swiftly dissipated, supporters forced to witness the same colorless sequences over and over again as Arsenal half-heartedly probed with little success.

Things were rarely more exciting after the restart, either, Arsenal notably lacking the ingenuity offered by Bukayo Saka and Martin Ødegaard. Shots were infrequent and aesthetically-pleasing football even more so, the Gunners bereft of ideas from open play and lacking inspiration around the Sporting box.

In the end, their lackadaisical approach went unpunished, Arsenal’s one-goal lead from the first leg enough despite some nervy moments. But it was a performance unlikely to inspire confidence ahead of the crunch clash with Manchester City in the Premier League this weekend.

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Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Sporting CP (4-2-3-1)

Declan Rice started despite an injury scare. | Vince Mignott/DeFodi Images/DeFodi/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: David Raya—7.7: Several shaky moments with his feet added to nerves inside the Emirates. Rarely required to make a save, though.

RB: Cristhian Mosquera—6.5: Arsenal continue to miss the injured Jurriën Timber at right back, Mosquera offering little attacking width to create room for Noni Madueke.

CB: William Saliba—7.0: Not entirely comfortable against Luis Suárez in the first half, but flawless after the restart.

CB: Gabriel—7.3: Sporting’s attacking threats provided Gabriel and his fellow defenders with food for thought, but the Brazil international was rarely outsmarted by his adversaries in green and white.

LB: Piero Hincapié—7.1: Similarly to Mosquera, the Ecuadorian couldn’t offer any attacking spark. Strong defensively, however.

DM: Martín Zubimendi—7.9: Performed defensive duties admirably and recycled possession effectively, but Arsenal could have used some punching forward passes through the lines from the Spaniard.

DM: Declan Rice—7.5: Shrugged off injury concerns to make his 150th Arsenal appearance and operated with his usual grace in the engine room.

RM: Noni Madueke—7.3: Drew some early fouls with his incisive darts within the final third, yet was unable to explode into life at any point.

AM: Eberechi Eze—6.5: Offered glimpses of his technical class, but they never materialized into fully-blown moments of genius.

LM: Gabriel Martinelli—6.1: Drifted inside too often when Arsenal were desperate for width and seldom troubled Sporting’s defensive line.

ST: Viktor Gyökeres—6.3: Alarmingly quiet against his former team and served up some abysmal hold-up play at times. Deservedly replaced before the hour mark.

SUB: Kai Havertz (56’ for Gyökeres)—6.5: Offered more than Gyökeres, although it was a very low bar.

SUB: Max Dowman (63’ for Madueke)—6.8: Brave in possession and eager to make things happen.

SUB: Gabriel Jesus (79’ for Eze)—6.3: Involved infrequently after coming on.

SUB: Leandro Trossard (79’ for Martinelli)—6.3: Struck the post with Arsenal’s best moment of the second half.

Subs not used: Kepa Arrizabalaga (GK), Tommy Setford (GK), Ben White, Marli Salmon, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Christian Nørgaard, Harrison Dudziak.

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What the Ratings Tell Us

Gyökeres underwhelmed once again. | Rob Newell/CameraSport/Getty Images

• Viktor Gyökeres certainly proved a point against his old side, but not the one he wanted to. Another dire display from the towering Swede yielded just 14 touches and his cumbersome play in possession drew frequent sighs from those inside the Emirates. Arteta has a major decision to make in the center forward department for the weekend trip to the Etihad Stadium.
• The striker was not the only forward to struggle for Arsenal. Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli failed to test Sporting’s fullbacks frequently enough, while Eberechi Eze created just one chance before his withdrawal. Arteta desperately needs more from his attacking players.
• Few in red shirts produced particularly positive performances, but Martín Zubimendi and Declan Rice served up cultured midfield displays to help limit Sporting’s effectiveness in transition. If only those in front of them could have been similarly productive.

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The Numbers That Explain Arsenal’s Underwhelming Night

• Arsenal’s limp attacking performance was underscored by the stats. They managed just one shot on target and an xG tally of 0.67 during a tepid display.
• The Gunners have now scored just three goals across their last five appearances in all competitions, attacking inspiration having dried up at the worst possible moment for the title hopefuls.
• At least Arsenal were able to limit their visitors to half chances. Sporting managed just eight shots throughout, as the home defense clung on to yet another clean sheet.

Statistic	Arsenal	Sporting CP
Possession	50%	50%
Expected Goals (xG)	0.67	0.29
Total Shots	15	8
Shots on Target	1	1
Big Chances	1	1
Passing Accuracy	87%	87%
Fouls Committed	7	11
Corners	8	3

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