We swept aside the Dutch champions in Eindhoven, recording our biggest ever away win in the Champions League.
It was all action from the moment Jurrien Timber headed us into the lead from close range at the far post. Ethan Nwaneri soon doubled the lead, thumping home his fellow academy graduate Myles Lewis-Skelly’s cross.
Mikel Merino – playing up front again - extended our advantage further, winning the ball well inside the area before slotting calmly into the corner. Three goals in 13 devastating minutes.
The hosts ended the half with the momentum though, Noa Lang scored a penalty conceded by Thomas Partey’s foul.
There was no letup in the second half. After a rapid double from Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard within minutes of the restart, Odegaard added his second and our sixth from long range then set up Riccardo Calafiori for a magnificent seventh on a record-breaking night.
Positive start
The opening 10 minutes was played almost exclusively in the host’s half, as we started brightly, with plenty of movement in attack.
Nwaneri, becoming the second youngest Premier League player ever to start a Champions League knockout game, set up our first chance, but Gabriel couldn’t make a decent connection.
Partey then threaded a pass through to Martin Odegaard who sidestepped one defender, before getting knocked out of his stride just as he was about to shoot from 12 yards out. The referee waved away our persistent penalty appeals.
Declan Rice soon had the ball in the net, but he had been flagged offside in the build-up.
For all our positive early play though, PSV nearly took the lead with their first attack. David Raya couldn’t cut out a low cross and the ball fell invitingly for the arriving Ismael Saibari. He looked certain to score, but blasted the ball against the bar as Gabriel slid in to try and block. The rebound was then fired wide by Ryan Flamingo as we escaped punishment.
Double strike
Within moments of nearly falling behind, we took the lead. Rice stood up an inviting cross to the far post, where Timber arrived to head in from close-range.
It was a sweet, sweet moment for the Netherlands international, back in his home country and playing against the rivals of his two previous clubs – Feyenoord and Ajax.
Less than five minutes later it got even better. Lewis-Skelly, back in the side after domestic suspension, was the provider this time. He twisted and turned inside the area, then found his fellow Hale End graduate Nwaneri, who smashed home at the near post.
It was the first time the two home-grown talents had combined to score for the first-team. In fact it was the first time two English teenagers had ever combined for a goal in Champions League history.
The Dutch champions, who finished 14th in the new-look league phase before knocking out Juventus in the play-off round, were well and truly rocked.
Merino makes it three
Merino curled home our third, capitalising on some sloppy defending from the hosts. He did well to win the ball back inside the area, then had plenty of time to pick his spot and dispatch his shot low inside the far post.
As soon as we went 3-0 up, Mikel Arteta brought on Riccardo Calafiori for Lewis-Skelly – the teenager had earlier narrowly escaped a second booking after committing two fouls in quick succession.
As we approached half-time we allowed PSV a route back into it. Partey fouled Luuk de Jong and the referee awarded a spot kick. Noa Lang stepped up and thumped the penalty past a rooted Raya. Game on once more.
We kept creating chances though. Rice forced a wonderful low save from Walter Benitez with a stinging right-footed shot before de Jong headed over from close range, getting on the end of a dangerous Tyrell Malacia cross.
Lightning restart
The start of the second half was even more dramatic. Within two and a half minutes of PSV kicking off we had netted two more. Nwaneri beat his man all ends up on the right, crossed low into the area where the sprawling Benitez could only palm right into the feet of Odegaard, who gleefully dispatched his shot.
Trossard became our fifth different scorer of the night, after a wonderful give-and-go with Calafiori on the left wing, which he finished with a deft right-footed finish inside the six-yard box.
It was the fastest a side had ever hit five goals away from home in Champions League history, and was a devastating double blow, but still the game remained wide open. Gabriel blocked an Ivan Perisic shot before Nwaneri ran half the length of the pitch before drawing a save from Benitez.
Setting records
We were clearly feeling at home in the Philips Stadion – on our third visit in as many seasons. We drew here last term, and lost 2-0 in the Europa League the year before, but this was a different story entirely.
Trossard scored again, but was well offside, before Arteta sent on Raheem Sterling and Alex Zinchenko. We were in total control now, and Odegaard soon made it 6-1, after a long passing move. While the jubilant away supporters were greeting every touch with oles, the skipper strode forward and his shot was too hot for the keeper to handle.
There was more to come. The magnificent Odegaard set up Calafiori inside the box, and the defender stroked his first-time shot inside the far post to make it the first time any side has ever scored seven away from home in the Champions League knockout stages.
It’s carnival time here in the city of Eindhoven this week, but it was the Arsenal supporters celebrating long into the night.
We’ve now won each of our last five games in the Champions League, the first time we’ve done that since 2005/06, when we went all the way to the final…
What’s next
The second leg takes place next Wednesday at Emirates Stadium, but before that we travel to Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon to take on Manchester United in the Premier League.
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