Arteta and Raya both blame Arsenal's wastefulness after nervy Slavia Prague escape

Arsenal ground out a Champions League victory away at Slavia Prague, but the performance left manager Mikel Arteta and goalkeeper David Raya frustrated by the same failing — the Gunners’ inability to convert a string of first-half chances before a sloppy second-half display invited a nervy finish.

Raya was the hero late on, producing a crucial stop to deny Oskar Kubiak’s header as Slavia threatened to snatch a result, yet the Spaniard was in no mood to celebrate the save. “First half we played really, really well,” Raya said. “We created a lot of chances and could have scored more but the second half was completely different. They stepped up a gear and made it difficult for us and we have to learn from it.”

Raya identified Arsenal’s carelessness in possession as the root cause of the second-half collapse. “We had too many giveaways especially in the final third. There was too much running from box to box and we have to manage those reactions and go for the third and fourth goal,” he added, while acknowledging the importance of the three points.

Arteta echoed those concerns from the touchline, where he cut an animated and visibly frustrated figure as Arsenal gradually surrendered control. “Two very different halves,” the Arsenal head coach said. “We should have had three or four goals in the first half but we didn’t do it. Right at the start of the second half we were on the back foot, very sloppy and gave balls away. Then we had to suffer.”

Arteta made six changes during the match but refused to use the rotation as an excuse, insisting he trusted the quality of his squad. “Whether we were lacking something I don’t know but I would have done the same thing again,” he said, before putting the result in broader context. “I value what the team has done now — it is 11 away games we played” in the Champions League.

Slavia’s late goal gave the home side hope and forced Arsenal into a tense closing spell, but the Gunners ultimately held on. The result keeps Arsenal’s European campaign on track, even if the manner of the victory left both manager and players with plenty to address before their next assignment.