- Date:2010-03-31
- Kick-off:19:45
- Venue:Emirates Stadium
- Attendance:59572
- Referee:Busacca, M
Live Commentary
90mins
FULL-TIME: ARSENAL 2-2 BARCELONA
90mins
Sensible play from the visitors as they keep possession deep into stoppage time.
90mins
Walcott wastes the ball, crossing staright to Valdes.
90mins
Walcott makes another darting run, but his cross is cut out this time. Three additional minutes at the end of this European classic.
88mins
Silly foul by Song on Henry. Still time for a winner.
87mins
Fabregas comes back on. Heroic stuff from the Gunners skipper.
87mins
Messi is brought off and defender Gabriel Milito comes on.
86mins
Looks like Fabregas may have to come off the pitch. He looks to have hurt himself striking in the penalty.
85mins
ARSENAL 2-2 BARCELONA: FABREGAS smashes the spot kick beyond Valdes. What a finish we have here.
84mins
Puyol is off! He was the last man, but decision looks very harsh.
83mins
Penalty for Arsenal! Puyol is adjudged to have brought Fabregas.
82mins
Arsenal look tired now. They require a goal from somewhere to avoid needing two at Camp Nou.
80mins
Can Arsenal grab what would be an undeserved leveller in the last ten minutes?
79mins
Diaby is cautioned for scything down Keita. No complaints from anyone at the Emirates.
77mins
Arsenal are constantly looking for Walcott here and rightly so. He is causing Maxwell big problems.
77mins
Former Arsenal legend Thierry Henry is brought on and two goal Ibrahimovic makes way.
76mins
Messi breaks clear and fires straight at Almunia.
74mins
Eboue picks up a yellow card. Looked a harsh one.
73mins
Fabregas' effort drifts safely over the top. Brings an end to Arsenal dominance.
72mins
Pique in the book and he too misses the second leg. Free-kick in very dangerous position.
71mins
Arsenal look hungry again. Walcott's cross causes panic, but is eventually cleared.
69mins
ARSENAL 1-2 BARCELONA: WALCOTT reduces the deficit. The England man has made an instant impact. Can the Gunners turn this around?
68mins
Walcott in the act as his sliding cross is deflected by Maxwell and Valdes gathers comfortably.
67mins
Sagna is replaced by Theo Walcott. Last throw of the dice from Wenger.
65mins
Maxwell is felled in the Gunners area and Sagna is lucky to get away with that one.
63mins
Looks like Guardiola's men are happy to play out time now as they have one foot in the last four of the competition.
62mins
Cross into the Barcelona area is gathered by Valdes.
60mins
Arsenal look down and out here. Barca are threading the ball around in majestic fashion.
59mins
ARSENAL 0-2 BARCELONA: IBRAHIMOVIC is at the double! Fine strike from the towering front man as he smashes into the roof of the net.
58mins
Great goal-saving challenge from Song as Maxwell's teasing ball is almost turned in by Ibrahimovic.
57mins
Bendtner almost gets lucky as Puyol's clearance hits him, but drops to Valdes and he mops up the danger.
56mins
The ball is in Arsenal's penalty area and they struggle to clear their lines.
54mins
Xavi heads wide as Barca launch a counter-attack. Fascinating stuff at the Emirates.
54mins
What a chance for Bendtner. The Gunners break and Clichy's cross lands on his head, but Valdes is equal to it.
53mins
Messi's free-kick strikes the wall and is cleared.
51mins
Pedro misses the target. Fine chance as the midfielder's effort drifts wide of the post from the edge of the area.
50mins
Barca are playing keep ball now. They look like they could easily retain their crown this term.
49mins
Fabregas bombs on and tangles with Pique. Play-on says the referee.
48mins
The crowd is flat now. The hosts need a boost from somewhere.
47mins
Absolute shocker for the Gunners. The goal was within 30 seconds of the re-start.
46mins
ARSENAL 0-1 BARCELONA: IBRAHIMOVIC opens the scoring! A long ball from Gerard Pique is chased down by the Swede and as Almunia storms off his line, Ibrahimovic lobs him. Howler from the stopper.
46mins
Barcelona get the second half underway.
45mins
Wenger's decision to rush Gallas and Fabregas back into the team looks like a bad call. Barca coach Josep Guardiola will wonder how his team don't hold a lead.
45mins
Thankfully, a chance to breathe as an absorbing first period comes to a close. Barca have been the better side by a country mile, but Arsenal have had their moments.
45mins
HALF-TIME: ARSENAL 0-0 BARCELONA
45mins
Another fine cross from Nasri is blocked by Puyol again. The diminutive Frenchman is the hosts' chief threat this evening.
45mins
Arsenal need the half-time whistle here in order to re-group.
44mins
Gallas is replaced by Denilson.
44mins
Fabregas is cautioned. He will miss the return leg at Camp Nou.
44mins
Fine move from Arsenal ends in Nasri's cross being cut out by Carles Puyol.
42mins
Gallas is carried off on a stretcher. He looks unlikely to make a return.
41mins
Gallas is down now. The Gunners' team selection looks like it isn't paying off with the Frenchman and Fabregas struggling.
40mins
Song goes into the book. Stupid one for the midfielder as he fails to retreat from a free-kick.
39mins
Clichy makes a telling break up the left and wins a free-kick in a promising position. Fabregas' lofted ball is poor and 'keeper Victor Valdes makes an easy catch. Disappointing from the skipper.
37mins
Bendtner is offside again as Barcelona's defence looks a little shaky failing to clear Nasri's cross.
37mins
Messi's strike nestles straight into Almunia's arms.
36mins
Song trips Xavi. Another set-piece in a dangerous position.
35mins
Bendtner's telling cross is headed tamely wide by Abou Diaby.
34mins
Xavi's pass to Maxwell is placed straight into touch. A rare error from the midfield maestro.
33mins
Great play between Ibrahimovic and Messi again allows the big Swede to fire on goal, but he drags his shot wide.
31mins
Nicklas Bendtner was almost into the action for the first time, but he is caught offside.
29mins
Constant Barcelona pressure is halted as Ibrahimovic fouls challenging Sagna.
27mins
The injured Arshavin is replaced by Emmanuel Eboue. Blow for Arsenal.
27mins
Gael Clichy may be fortunate there. Messi dances beyond his challenge but goes down. Referee waves play on.
26mins
Fabregas is not looking sharp in the centre of the park and it looks like Arshavin is about to be replaced.
24mins
Arshavin is limping around after the challenge that brought his yellow card. The last thing Wenger needs.
23mins
Samir Nasri's strike on goal is a whisker away from breaking the deadlock. The crowd are in full voice now.
22mins
Better from the Gunners. They are getting fired into the challenges now and Barca don't like it. Sagna's cross is headed away as Arsenal create some pressure.
21mins
Arshavin goes into the book for a late challenge. First one of the evening.
19mins
Arsenal break the play up a bit better and they need more of that to unsettle Barcelona.
18mins
Alves' cross is headed straight at Almunia. Barcelona are going for the jugular here.
17mins
Xavi's free-kick falls to Pedro and his effort inside the penalty area is headed over by Bacary Sagna.
16mins
The visitors continue to pour forward. Can Arsenal weather this extended storm? Vermaelen gives away free-kick by the corner flag deep in their own territory.
15mins
Awesome from Barca and Almunia! He saves from Xavi from close range.
14mins
Almunia saves point-blank effort from Ibrahimovic.
12mins
Messi fires over when well-placed. This is like a practice match for the Spanish giants.
11mins
Alexandre Song brings down Seydou Keita and a free-kick is awarded in Arsenal's half, but nothing comes of it.
9mins
Arenal lose the ball deep in Barcelona's half and Ibrahimovic runs clear of Thomas Vermaelen, but shoots into the side netting.
7mins
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is cutting a bemused figure on the sidelines in these early stages.
6mins
Further Barca pressure. Daniel Alves storms up the right wing, collects the ball and crosses for Ibrahimovic but he shoots over. Wouldn't have counted as he was offside.
6mins
Messi weaves through and smashes straight at Almunia. Ominous signs at the Emirates.
4mins
Andrey Arshavin's sloppy pass is almost costly, but Arsenal get the ball back to Almunia. They need to get into the game here.
3mins
Barcelona are looking up for this from the off. The Gunners' defence could be in for a long night.
2mins
What a chance! From the corner Sergio Busquets has an effort saved from Manuel Almunia.
1mins
Messi's storming run leads to a chance as Ibrahimovic's cross is knocked behind for a corner. Danger already for the hosts.
1mins
Arsenal get the game underway.
0mins
We are almost ready for kick-off and the players are out on the pitch. This promises to be a cracker in the capital.
0mins
Former Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has to settle for a place on the Barca bench this evening.
0mins
Champions League holders Barcelona are without the injured Andres Iniesta, but Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic will form a potent forward line.
0mins
William Gallas makes a welcome return and will figure at the heart of the Gunners' defence.
0mins
The big news is that Arsenal talisman Cesc Fabregas has been selected to start despite struggling with a knee problem picked up in the weekend game at Birmingham City.
0mins
Good evening and welcome to this crucial Champions League quarter final clash between Arsenal and Barcelona from the Emirates Stadium.
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Match Report
Arsenal's Champions League dream is hanging by a thread after grabbing an unlikely 2-2 draw against Barcelona at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday evening.
The Gunners looked down and out as Zlatan Ibrahimovic opened up a two-goal lead as the reigning champions put on a sumptuous display.
However, his efforts were cancelled out by substitute Theo Walcott and a late penalty from Cesc Fabregas as Carles Puyol was dismissed for tangling with the Gunners skipper.
An absorbing first-half somehow yielded no goals as the Gunners somehow managed to keep Josep Guardiola's magnificent outfit at bay.
Barcelona started like a house on fire and Sergio Busquets was unlucky not to open the scoring inside two minutes.
His low drive was turned away for a corner by Manuel Almunia before Ibrahimovic missed a number of chances as Barca turned the screw.
Lionel Messi threatened from distance on occasions as the all-conquering outfit dominated the early exchanges.
Arsene Wenger's decision to rush William Gallas back into the team proved a bad one as he left on a stretcher to be replaced by Denilson.
This was after Andrey Arshavin had limped out of the action midway through the half, with Emmanuel Eboue coming on for the Russian.
Fabregas passed a late fitness test, but was cautioned with the interval looming. The booking, his third of the competition, rules him out of the second leg at Camp Nou, a bitter blow for the Barcelona-born star.
Arsenal's first-half resistance counted for nothing as Ibrahimovic opened the scoring within 30 seconds of the re-start.
Gerard Pique's ball forward was chased down by the Swede and, as first-half hero Almunia rushed off his line, Ibrahimovic lofted the ball into the far corner of the net for a deserved lead.
He doubled the advantage, slamming into the top corner after being played through on goal on the hour.
His goal sparked a blistering Arsenal fightback and Wenger made one final change, bringing on Theo Walcott for defender Bacary Sagna.
His bold move proved to inspire the hosts and it was Walcott who halved the deficit. He collected a telling pass on the right-hand side of the penalty area and slotted through Victor Valdes to renew hope.
With both sides looking weary, it was the hosts that grabbed the initiative.
As Nicklas Bendtner's header fell into the Barca penalty area, Fabregas fell to the ground under Puyol's challenge and referee Massimo Busacca awarded a penalty.
He sent the defender off, allowing Fabregas to level with five minutes remaining.
Arsenal huffed and puffed, but Barca's ten-men held firm and now Arsenal must score in Spain to stand any chance of progressing.
Arsenal Team
Barcelona Team
Arsenal | Barcelona |
Corners
| 0 | 4 |
Fouls
| 18 | 11 |
Goal attempts
| 6 | 17 |
Shots off target
| 3 | 7 |
Offsides
| 2 | 4 |




90mins
A fantastic clash is brought to an end. Barca will wonder how they failed to open up a first leg advantage, but the Gunners must score in Spain to stand a chance of progressing next week.