Arsenal made their first-half goals count at Fortuna Arena, beating Slavia Prague 2–1 on Wednesday to collect three points in the UEFA Champions League league phase. Noni Madueke opened the scoring in the ninth minute and Viktor Gyökeres doubled the advantage in the 38th, before Wiktor Nowak’s 90th-minute reply gave the hosts late hope.
Arsenal build their advantage before the break
Madueke’s ninth-minute opener gave Arsenal an early foothold in Prague and left Slavia chasing the fixture almost from the outset. The visitors then strengthened their position seven minutes before half-time, with Gyökeres finding the net in the 38th minute to establish a 2–0 interval lead.
Those two goals proved decisive. Arsenal finished with 56.5% possession, but this was not an evening when control of the ball translated into a monopoly on chances. Slavia remained a threat, and the final numbers underlined how much work the visitors had to do to protect their advantage.
Slavia threaten, but the reply comes late
The hosts registered 18 attempts to Arsenal’s 12 and led the shots-on-target count six to five. They also won four corners to the visitors’ two: evidence that Slavia’s attacking efforts extended well beyond their late goal, even if they could not turn enough of those attempts into a comeback.
With Ezri Konsa booked in the 53rd minute and Declan Rice cautioned in the 68th, Arsenal navigated the second half without adding to their lead. Slavia finally broke through when Nowak struck in the 90th minute, cutting the deficit to one and keeping the result in question heading into added time.
There was no equaliser, however, and Arsenal emerged with the victory when the final whistle arrived at 90+6. Their first-half finishing supplied the difference; Slavia’s greater volume of attempts could not undo the damage.
Clinical first half settles the contest
For Arsenal, the reward was a valuable away win built on Madueke and Gyökeres delivering before the break. For Slavia, Nowak’s late intervention offered a final opening, but their response ultimately arrived too late to salvage a point.
