Rome [Italy], February 19 (ANI): After being held to a draw by Benfica, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said that his side was not “ruthless enough” in the match.
Arsenal and Benfica played out a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Europa League Round of 32 here on Friday.
“I think we had to leave the stadium today with much more than we have right now. Everything is completely open for next Thursday,” the club’s official website quoted Arteta as saying.
“We have some positives to take from the game because we dominated the game and we had patches of really good moments where we created some big chances. We weren’t ruthless enough in the opponents’ box and the disappointing thing obviously was the way we conceded the goal,” he added.
The match witnessed a tough competition and both clubs managed to restrict each other from taking a lead in the first half. In the 55th minute, Benfica managed to break the deadlock after Pizzi successfully converted a penalty.
However, the lead did not last long as two minutes later, Bukayo Saka netted a goal, bringing the scoreline to 1-1.
Praising Saka’s performance, Arteta said: “I think he’s in a great moment, he’s full of confidence. He’s been really important in recent results. His form is probably the highest that it’s been since I’ve been here and he’s been really consistent. He needs to keep going and (we need to) be wise with him because at the moment he’s a big part of the team.”
Arsenal and Benfica will play against each other in the second leg on Thursday. (ANI)