Arsenal will face Sporting CP in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after Eberechi Eze’s stunning first goal in the competition helped them beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 at the Emirates and 3-1 on aggregate.
Arsenal had 12 attempts in the first half and Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper Janis Blaswich had performed superbly to keep them out, before Eze’s stunning strike on the spin from about 20 yards fired Mikel Arteta’s side ahead.
Leverkusen had defended well across the tie, but played themselves into trouble after 63 minutes, and Declan Rice struck a second with a fine shot from the edge of the box.
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Kai Havertz had a third goal disallowed for handball and David Raya produced a superb save from Christian Kofane, but overall Arsenal were comfortable and will now face Viktor Gyokeres’ former side in the next round in the weeks of April 6 and 13.
Here, The Athletic’s Dan Sheldon breaks down the key talking points.
Was Eze’s goal one of the best in this season’s Champions League?
Blaswich was proving to be an immovable object as he made seven saves in the first half alone.
One shot he could not keep out, however, was Eze’s superb effort to break the deadlock — and when it comes to goal of the tournament, the 27-year-old will surely be on the long voting list. It was that good, and remarkably similar to his effort against Tottenham Hotspur in February.
He received a bouncing ball from Leandro Trossard, took one touch to set himself on the turn, and then struck it into the top corner. Such was the strike, he didn’t even break a stride after he saw it ripple into the net.
To celebrate, he nonchalantly completed the turn from his half-volley and held up the Arsenal badge on his shirt (finding it at the second attempt).
Eze was a picture of elegance in delirious surroundings. William Saliba, hands on head, could not believe what he had just witnessed, nor could the equally raucous home crowd.
As first Champions League goals go, Eze’s is right up there with the best of them.
Will Arsenal fancy their chances against Sporting?
Absolutely.
Sporting’s comprehensive comeback victory against Bodo/Glimt was impressive (winning 5-0 after extra time, having lost the first leg 3-0), but Arsenal are an entirely different proposition.
They have proven themselves to be arguably Europe’s best team this season, finishing top of the Champions League league phase, and will enter the quarter-final against Sporting as clear favourites.
And because they finished top, Arsenal earned the right to play every second leg of the knockout stages at the Emirates, meaning they will travel to Lisbon to play on either April 7 or April 8 before the following week’s fixture in north London.
A fascinating element to this tie is also Gyokeres’ return to his former club.
(Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Gyokeres scored 97 goals in 102 games for the Portuguese side, earning him a €63.5million (£54.8m, $74.3m) fixed upfront fee plus €10m (£8.6m, $11.5m) move to Arsenal last summer.
Although he is yet to get anywhere near those dizzying heights for Arsenal, Gyokeres going back to Sporting will make for a compelling narrative.
So Arsenal can score from open play, too?
In the build-up to the second leg at the Emirates, Bayer Leverkusen, via their X account, made multiple light-hearted references to set pieces.
They repainted the quarter-circle in one post and uploaded a picture of the London Eye with a caption that read, “No corners at all — if only it was like that everywhere in London”. It was a similar story in the build-up to the first leg, too.
No corners at all – if only it was like that everywhere in London 😄 pic.twitter.com/fPvTbVljBt
— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) March 17, 2026
However, as it turned out, Arsenal did not need set pieces to beat Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday night, with both goals coming from open play.
That said, they did test the German club from set pieces in the first half, particularly from Bukayo Saka’s in-swinging corners towards Gabriel.
Arsenal have become known for their set pieces this season, but their Champions League win was further evidence that they can hurt teams in more than one way.
Yes, Bayer Leverkusen’s defending left plenty to be desired at times, but in open play, Arteta’s side were patient and probing in equal measure.
What did Arteta say?
We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.
What next for Arsenal?
Sunday, March 22: Manchester City, Carabao Cup final (Wembley), 4.30pm UK, 12.30pm ET