Kai Havertz came off the bench to snatch a dramatic late winner as Arsenal secured a 1-0 victory over Sporting in their Champions League quarter-final first leg.
The German forward, introduced in the second half, slotted the ball past goalkeeper Rui Silva deep into added time to hand the Premier League leaders a slender advantage heading into next week's return fixture at the Emirates.
It was a tense evening in Lisbon for Mikel Arteta's side, who arrived in Portugal having lost their previous two matches for the first time this campaign.
That anxiety almost deepened early on when Sporting left-back Maxi Araujo rattled a fierce effort against the crossbar following a brilliant pass from Ousmane Diomande.
Kai Havertz's cool finish late on has given Arsenal the lead
|REUTERS
Arsenal enjoyed plenty of the ball in the opening period but struggled to turn that dominance into genuine scoring opportunities.
Their best chance came when Noni Madueke struck the woodwork directly from a corner kick.
Sporting looked dangerous on the break throughout, with Araujo again causing problems when he drove forward and laid the ball off to Francisco Trincao, whose shot drifted wide of the target.
Martin Zubimendi appeared to have broken the deadlock after the interval when he bent a lovely strike into the net from outside the box.
However, the goal was chalked off because Viktor Gyokeres, the former Sporting striker, had strayed offside during the build-up.
Sporting left-back Maxi Araujo rattled a fierce effort against the crossbar early on
|REUTERS
The Portuguese hosts then turned up the heat in the closing stages, throwing everything at Arsenal in search of an equaliser.
David Raya proved absolutely vital, pulling off three superb stops to keep the scores level when it looked like Sporting might nick something.
His heroics kept the Gunners in the contest and set the stage for Havertz's late intervention.
"He's unbelievable!" 🤩🧱
— Prime Video Sport UK (@primevideosport) April 7, 2026
Kai Havertz heaps praise on Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya after their victory at Sporting in the Champions League quarter-final first leg 🗣️🎙️ pic.twitter.com/38H6bnUlI7
Former Newcastle striker Alan Shearer was full of praise for the winning goal when speaking on Amazon Prime.
"That's what happens when you've got a brilliant goalkeeper that can keep it nil at that end in the hope you can produce some magic at the other end. And that's exactly what's just happened," he said.
Shearer highlighted Gabriel Martinelli's contribution, calling his run and pass "fantastic" before Havertz guided the ball low into the corner with a brilliant touch.
This triumph marks Arsenal's first win in three outings and provides a welcome confidence boost ahead of their Premier League clash with Bournemouth this weekend.