Cole's late winner gives Gunners lifeline

Arsenal 1 Dynamo Kiev 0

The England international ended the frustration for his team, but they will probably still need to take at least four points from their remaining two Group B games to make the last 16.

Against Kiev, who defeated them 2-1 in the Ukraine two weeks ago, they created chance after chance with Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires and Gilberto Silva all missing sitters, while Thierry Henry's miserable Champions League run at Highbury continued.

The Gunners were in action early, and Thierry Henry whistled a 20-yard free-kick just over the crossbar after Freddie Ljungberg was pulled down en route to goal in the fourth minute.

But then Dynamo's lightning counter-attacks had the Gunners chasing shadows for a spell, and Sol Campbell had to make two perfectly timed tackles in quick succession, notably on Maksim Shatskikh just six yards out, to prevent the visitors taking the lead.

Henry then burst clear down the left, and Ljungberg stretched to meet his low cross, but goalkeeper Alexander Shovkovsky stuck out a foot to direct it wide.

A superb ball from Bergkamp sent Ljungberg scuttling clear on the right, but the angle was too tight for his shot, and, with no support arriving in time, he had to watch his effort drift across the face of the goal.

Robert Pires wasted a clever set-up by Henry, shooting tamely at the near post, where Shovkovsky comfortably gathered in the 18th minute.

And Shovkovsky had a huge escape three minutes later as Arsenal turned the screw and Gilberto leapt head and shoulders above all challengers only to power a Pires free-kick straight into the keeper's grateful grasp.

Kiev came under siege with Henry chasing a long bouncing through ball and crashing into Shovkovsky, who just grabbed ball in time.

Then Pires rammed a cross-shot from the right into the outside netting just after Dynamo's Denys Onischenko limped off to be replaced Goran Sablic.

With 18 minutes to go to half-time, Gilberto picked up Arsenal's first yellow card of the Champions League campaign for a careless tackle that caught striker Jerko Leko late.

Portuguese referee Cardoso Cortez gave Pires a brief lecture when the Arsenal winger crashed down in the area after running straight into a Kiev defender.

But Pires looked much more appealing in the 40th minute when he latched on to a Bergkamp reverse pass and skidded his low shot from 18 yards a fraction wide.

Henry should have done better a minute later when charging down a faulty clearance by Georgi Peev, but shooting impulsively over the near angle on the left.

Arsenal wasted their best chance so far just three minutes into the second half and Bergkamp was the culprit.

Henry's nod down found the Dutchman unmarked 10 yards out, but he blasted his shot straight at Shovkovsky's legs.

Then Arsenal's defence completely lost the plot, for a spell continually giving the ball away with untidy clearances. Arsenal's passes seemed to be just a fraction off the mark, especially the final ball, with Pires and Henry sold short in quick succession by Ljungberg and Bergkamp, respectively.

Arsenal had four strikers on the pitch when Kanu replaced Ray Parlour 12 minutes from time, but could never feel totally secure against Kiev's swift counter-attack. They were denied yet again as late as the 87th minute when the leaping Shovkovsky tipped over Bergkamp's long-range drive, but within two minutes, Ashley Cole had headed a dramatic winner.

Kiev could not cope, for once, when Wiltord slung over a lofted cross from the right, and, as it dropped behind leaping figures in the six-yard box, Cole dived in to head home and spark wild celebrations.

ARSENAL: Lehmann, Lauren, Toure, Campbell, Cole, Ljungberg, Parlour, Silva, Pires, Bergkamp, Henry.

DYNAMO KIEV: Shovkovskiy, Fedorov, Leko, Nesmachnyi, Gavrancic, Ghioane, Shatskikh, Belkevich, Peev, Onyschenko, Gusev.

Referee: Lucilio Cardoso Cortez Batista (Portugal).