Gunners’ ugly draw secures passage

Slavia Prague 0 Arsenal 0

Arsene Wenger’s 100th match in elite level European club football was hardly a classic, in fact at times it was as unappetising as the wintry Prague weather.

Wenger admitted: “We tried to score tonight until the end but we didn’t create enough.

“To win away is difficult in the Champions League — especially against a team humiliated in the first game (7-0 in London).

“Overall you have to credit them — they defended very, very well.”

The point was enough to see Arsenal through from Group H, which they can top with victory in Sevilla later this month.

Wenger elected to leave key man and 11-goal midfielder Cesc Fabregas back in England, along with Belorussian Alexander Hleb.

But the likes of Theo Walcott, Gilberto, Denilson and Abou Diaby were quality replacements.

The visitors made a bright start, with young Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner looking strong in attack on his full debut in Europe’s elite club competition.

But Slavia are in good domestic form and showed no intention of such a timid surrender as in the Emirates Stadium.

The hosts were rewarded for a spell of their own pressure with a right-wing corner on 15 minutes.

Mickael Tavares arrived in the six-yard box, but could not keep his header down.

The match then dropped in tempo as both teams were careless in possession and failed to spring the offside trap.

As the half-hour mark passed, slowly the home side settled into a rhythm, which often had Arsenal on the back foot.

When Arsenal did break down the right through Walcott, his final delivery towards Bendtner in the middle was poor.

The England teenager was, though, the most dangerous player for the visitors, with his runs checked by three markers.

On 36 minutes, Zdenek Senkerik capitalised on a slip by William Gallas to get in on the right side of the Arsenal penalty area. However, his angled shot-on-the-turn was tipped over by Manuel Almunia.

Tavares was cautioned five minutes before the break after he hauled down Diaby, who was having a decent game in midfield.

The weather took a turn for the worse during the interval, as the heavens opened to flood the pitch.

The hosts felt they had a strong penalty claim on 50 minutes when Senkerik went tumbling under pressure from Lassana Diarra, but the referee waved away appeals which TV replays suggested was a sound call.

Slavia made a change on 64 minutes when David Kalivoda replaced former Liverpool man Vladimir Smicer.

However, the fresh legs for Slavia made little immediate difference to a match which was fast fading into insignificance.

However, on 75 minutes, substitute Kalivoda sent a long pass forward, which caught the Arsenal defence flat-footed. Senkerik was being chased down by Gallas as he ran into the area, where Almunia came out quickly to make a crucial save.

Wenger sent on Togo frontman Emmanuel Adebayor, replacing Bendtner with Eduardo then being given a rest and Emmanuel Eboue put into the action.

Denilson’s body check on Milan Ivana with eight minutes left earned him a yellow card and gave away a free-kick on edge of the Arsenal penalty area, which fortunately for the young Brazilian came to nothing — just about summing up the match as a spectacle.

SLAVIA PRAGUE: Vorel, Tavares, Hubacek, Drizd’al, Brabec, Smicer (Kalivoda 64), Svec, Pudil (Joblonsky 89), Suchy, Krajcik, Senkerik (Ivana 77).

ARSENAL: Almunia, Diarra, Gallas, Song Billong, Clichy, Walcott, Silva, Denilson, Diaby, Eduardo (Eboue 81), Bendtner (Adebayor 77).

Referee: Bertrand Layec (France)