Champions League: Arsenal raise the Standard

STANDARD LIEGE 2-3 ARSENAL

Arsenal survived a scare in Belgium after a late turnaround saw them beat Standard Liege in their opening Group H game.

The Belgian side, who are at this stage for the first time, were in dreamland after five minutes, as Mangala scored within two, and then Jovanovic converted a penalty which Gallas conceded. It was not until the last minute of the first half when the Gunners got on the scoresheet, with Bendtner sliding in to half the lead. Standard must have thought they were set for three points as they held a below-par Arsenal for much of the game, but Belgian international defender Thomas Vermaelen struck an equaliser for the Gunners in his homeland, although there was an element of controversy about it, as the build-up seemed to include a handball and an offside. The winner which came minutes later will also be seen as controversial, this time due to the man who scored it, Eduardo, who had his diving ban overturned a few days earlier. It was not Arsenal’s best performance, but the result was the most important thing to come away with.

The same applies for Liverpool, who beat Hungarian challengers Debrecen 1-0, with Dirk Kuyt getting a late first-half winner. Other big results from Wednesday included European giants Inter Milan and Barcelona holding each other to a 0-0 stalemate, and Rangers coming away from Stuttgart with a point after a 1-1 draw.

The next set of Champions League games are in a fortnight, on the 29th and 30th of September.