Kai Havertz’s stoppage-time winner has put Arsenal in the driving seat ahead of their Champions League quarter-final second leg at home to Sporting next week.
The 26-year-old’s late goal ensured Arsenal bounced back from successive defeats to Manchester City and Southampton with a morale-boosting victory in Lisbon.
Arsenal are among the favourites to lift the Champions League this season, but were made to work hard for their slender first-leg advantage and will be wary of the threat Sporting pose after a nervy victory.
Mikel Arteta would rightly deny that Arsenal have one eye on a potential semi-final date with either Barcelona or Atletico Madrid, but with both Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard still at risk of suspension, the Gunners boss will be mindful of either player picking up a booking at the Emirates next Wednesday.
UEFA regulations state that all yellow cards expire on completion of the quarter-finals. So, if either Zubimendi or Norgaard were to be booked against Sporting, they would be banned for the first leg of the semi-final.
Norgaard has been a bit-part player for Arsenal this season and did not feature in the first leg against Sporting.
The Danish midfielder was, however, booked during the league phase games against Slavia Prague and Club Brugge.
Zubimendi, meanwhile, has already served a one-game suspension after picking up bookings in each of Arsenal’s first three league phase games.
The Spaniard was then cautioned in the first leg of the Gunners’ round-of-16 tie against Bayer Leverkusen, and is now one booking away from a further one-game suspension.
UEFA regulations stipulate that “players and team officials are suspended for the next competition match after three cautions, which did not result in a red card, as well as following any subsequent odd-numbered caution (fifth, seventh, ninth, etc.).”
While Norgaard and Zubimendi remain at risk of suspension, Declan Rice has escaped potential punishment after avoiding a booking in the first leg against Sporting.
Riccardo Calafiori, Gabriel, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Noni Madueke, Gabriel Martinelli, William Saliba, Ben White, and Havertz, who each have one booking to their name, have also ensured they will not face any yellow-card suspension after the Gunners avoided a single caution against Sporting.
