Sevilla vs Arsenal final score, result as Gunners hold off fightback after Jesus dazzles

Dom Farrell

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Sevilla vs Arsenal final score, result as Gunners hold off fightback after Jesus dazzles image

With Arsenal needing a result to keep themselves afloat in Group B play, Gabriel Jesus turned in a majestic, Champions League-worthy performance to lead Arsenal to an impressive 2-1 win over Sevilla on the road.

Mikel Arteta's side went down to a 2-1 loss at Lens on matchday two, despite Jesus giving them a first-half lead against the Ligue 1 club, putting them in an early hole in the standings.

As such, the former Manchester City forward was to the fore again, first setting up Gabriel Martinelli for an early chance when Sevilla goalkeeper Orjan Nyland stood firm to save.

But Martinelli made no mistake in the fourth minutes of first-half stoppage time, coolly rounding Nyland to score after a Cruyff turn and perfectly weighted pass from Jesus carved the Europa League holders apart.

Provider became goalscorer early in the second half when Jesus darted around Jesus Navas to unfurl a sumptuous finish from a tight angle, bagging what ended up as the eventual game-winning goal.

Sevilla looked like they might be ripe for a hiding but Nemanja Gudelj powered home a header from Ivan Rakitic's corner before the hour. There were nervy moments to follow for Arsenal, not least from goalkeeper David Raya, but they held out to move to the top of the group on six points.

Sevilla vs Arsenal final score

  Final Score Goalscorers
Sevilla 1 Gudelj (59')
Arsenal 2 Martinelli (45+4'),
Jesus (53')

Lineups:

Sevilla (4-3-3, right to left): 13. Orjan Nyland (GK) — 16. Jesus Navas, 6. Nemanja Gudelj, 4. Sergio Ramos, 19. Marcos Acuna — 24. Boubakary Soumare, 18. Djibril Sow (Mariano Diaz, 57'), 10. Ivan Rakitic — 11. Dodi Lukebakio (Erik Lamela, 57'), 15. Youssef En-Nesyri, 5. Lucas Ocampos.

Arsenal (4-3-3 right to left): 22. David Raya (GK) — 4. White, 2. William Saliba, 6. Gabriel, 18. Takehiro Tomiyasu — 41. Declan Rice, 20. Jorginho, 8. Martin Odegaard (Kai Havertz, 73')  — 7. Bukayo Saka (Leandro Trossard, 81'), 9. Gabriel Jesus (Eddie Nketiah, 81'), 11. Gabriel Martinelli (Jakub Kiwior, 90+1').

MORE: Where to watch Sevilla vs Arsenal: Live stream, TV channel, lineups, betting odds

Sevilla vs Arsenal post-match news, analysis, commentary

What is Gabriel Jesus’ injury?

The sight of Jesus limping off holding the back of his leg late on put a downer on Arsenal’s night. Immediately because Eddie Nketiah could not replicate his supreme standard of hold-up play at a time when Sevilla were looking to come on strong in search of an equaliser.

Looking further ahead, a fit and firing Jesus will be vital to Arsenal’s chances of making a run deep into the competition. Much has been made of a young side taking their first steps on this stage but Jesus’s Champions League pedigree has really stood out. He now has three goals in as many games and his contributions in Seville came right out of the top drawer.

"You need magic moments in big games and big players to step in and create those moments,” Arteta told TNT sports. “Today he has done something special."

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Tomiyasu repays Arteta’s faith

Takehiro Tomiyasu replaced Oleksandr Zinchenko at halftime during Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Chelsea and Arteta preferred the Japan international to start in Spain. Any thoughts that Tomiyasu might play as a more conventional fullback were quickly dismissed as he darted forward into central positions to effectively help Arsenal build early attacks.

The 24-year-old’s defensive prowess was also to the fore and his excellent challenge to hinder Youssef En-Nesyri shortly before Arsenal made it 1-0 was a key moment.

Jury out on Arsenal goalkeeper Raya

It remains harder to find a similar level of praise or understanding when it comes to Arteta’s decision to elevate Raya. In part, this is because of the exceptional circumstances that mean an intense focus is placed upon the goalkeeper’s every move as Aaron Ramsdale stews on the bench. 

Matters aren’t helped when Raya fashions needlessly heart-stopping moments, such as when he misjudged a late cross, punched the ball with the back of his hand and it nestled on the roof of the net.

Digging in to see out a fine win should elevate the whole defensive unit, with centre-back William Saliba and Declan Rice in front of the back four excelling during the final half hour. But it felt like Arsenal got the job done despite Raya and not because of him.

Sevilla vs Arsenal live updates, highlights, and commentary

Fulltime: That's it. Arsenal get over the line and that feels like a huge win. For the best part of an hour, they were calm and in control. Jesus produced a glorious assist for Martinelli and the goal he scored himself was even better. But Gudelj headed home to change the complexion of the contest. Arsenal suddenly had to di in and ride out a storm. They did it very well. Thanks for joining us.

90th minute+7: Ocampos gets more space than he's had all night but can't bring a bouncing ball under his spell, lashing wide.

90th minute+4: Sevilla stalk around the edge of the Arsenal area. Oh, and almost an equaliser! Chaos in the area as Raya pushes behind off the back of his hand having misjudged a punch. Nyland is up for the corner. It comes to nothing and Acuna's shot is blocked.

90th minute: Rakitic swings an inviting ball in and En Nesyri launches himself at it to head wide. Arteta sends on defender Kiwior for Martinelli to try and see this out. There will be six added minutes.

87th minute: Rice has really been excellent since the onus shifted to Arsenal seeing this out. Jorginho botches a clearance though and Raya springs to his left to save Diaz's header.

79th minute: Jesus is down. He appeared to clash knees with Soumare in a challenge. Eddie Nketiah is getting ready to come on.

76th minute: Lamela goes down under a challenge from Saliba looking for a penalty. The referee books him for diving. The correct call.

75th minute: The game has quietened down a touch. Did that Rice run take the wind out of the Sevilla storm or are the hosts steadying themselves for one last assault.

69th minute: Diaz has changed the feel of this game entirely, but the extra player up front means there is more room in midfield for Rice to launch into storming runs like this one. He plays the ball to Saka, who is crowded out.

66th minute: Ocampos tries an acrobatic volley and its not a bad try. Now Diaz does similar after Rakitic lifts a ball into the box and Sevilla get players forward in support. Arsenal are having to ride out a tricky spell.

64th minute: Sevilla substitute Diaz clatters against the crossbar... albeit after setting himself up with a very obvious handball. But the stadium is bouncing now. The home fans believe.

59th minute: GOOOOOOAAAAALLLL!!!!! Nemanja Gudelj!!!!!

Game on! Raktitic with a devilish ball into the box, Gudelj produces and thumping head as Jesus blots his copy book by losing the Sevilla centre-back.

56th minute: Sevilla groggily on the ropes now and this could get messy. Saka bust into the box, has a penalty appeal turned down and Odegaard can't finish.

53rd minute: GOOOOOOAAAAALLLL!!!!! Gabriel Jesus!!!

Wow, what a game the Brazil forward is having. The assist for Martinelli was beautiful and he did this one all by himself, shimmying towards the byline, cutting outside Navas and curling a brilliant finish over Nyland and into the far corner. A beautiful goal and a mountain to climb for Sevilla.

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46th minute: We're back underway. How much will that late, late Arsenal goal in the first half have taken the wind out of Sevilla?

Halftime: Mikel Arteta will be delighted with that. Not a half to live long in the memory but Arsenal have been exemplary in terms of organisation and controlling the contest. Then, when Sevilla threatened to open it up Jesus produced a moment of magic and Martinelli did the rest.

45th minute+4: GOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!!!! Gabriel Martinelli!!!!

Ocampos and Acuna combine down the left and Arsenal are forced into some last-ditch work in their box. But what's this? Jesus with an outrageous first touch and turn to flip the whole script. He rolls a pass to put Martinelli through and, unlike with the earlier chance, he makes no mistake, coolly rounding Nyland to score.

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45th minute+1: That's Sevilla's best moment as Ramos storms up the field and gets Arsenal a bit disorganised. The ball is played through to En-Nesyri, who fires just wide under telling pressure from Tomiyasu.

45th minute: There will be 45 minutes of added time. Not entirely sure that's necessary. 

41st minute: Raya pouches the free-kick and sets Jesus away on a powerful run that wins an Arsenal throw well into the Sevilla half.

39th minute: Lukebako makes a fine run down the Arsenal left and delivers a low cross that White clears. There should really have been more white shirts in the box asking questions there. Sow and Martinelli collide, Sevilla get the free-kick and both men need a bit of treatment.

37th minute: Rice picks Sow's pocket and Saliba takes the chance to surge forward from centre-back. However, his pass for Martinelli is overhit and the Brazilian just fails to stop it going out for a goalkick.

36th minute: Saka is carrying on. Ocampos spies an opening about 20 yards out but Arsenal defend the edge of their box very well and Raya claims the attempted chip through with ease.

32nd minute: Saka is down and asking for assistance after a robust but fair challenge from Ocampos. The England winger was forced to limp off during Arsenal's previous Champions League game at Lens, remember.

29th minute: A rare chance for Arsenal to break after a Sevilla raid is snuffed out. Saka cuts inside and tries to smash in a trademark left-footer from outside the box. Acuna gets in the way, the ball clattering off his backside. A stinger.

26th minute: Rice goes marauding into the Sevilla box. Gudelj cuts out his attempted pass. Saka is screaming at his teammate, suggesting he thinks he'd have been the better option.

22nd minute: Ooohh, Raya again with a dicey moment. Arsenal really need him to settle down. Up the other end Tomiyasu lofts a pass into the area. Ramos mops up. The Gunners keep the attack alive and Jesus fizzes one over after being teed up by Martinelli.

15th minute: Rain teeming down in Seville now. Raya doesn't make the best clearance, Ocampos looks to wriggle through a few challenges and White mops up. Raya's next clearance is a better one.

10th minute: Sevilla respond well as Navas whips in a teasing low cross and Ocampos darts across to meet it with the outside of his boot at the near post. Wide but a warning.

8th minute: Big chance for Arsenal. Jesus nips in to take the ball, exploiting Sevilla's high line and slipping a pass through to Martinelli. The winger darts through one vs one with Nyland but the home keeper stands firm to make a fine save. Arteta is visibly frustrated on the bench. He knows it should be 1-0.

6th minute: Tomiyasu has been heavily involved in the play so far and gets forward to spin a shot into the side netting from 25 yards.

5th minute: Watchful start from both sides but Arsenal starting to get a grip on most of the possession. Jesus looks to make something happen in the box but the ball won't come down for him.

2 mins prior to kickoff: Anthem done, handshakes done. Let get to it.

5 mins prior to kickoff: There's a light show flashing around the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan and there's some atmosphere inside the famous old ground. The teams are in the tunnel and ready to go.

30 mins prior to kickoff: The solitary change to the Arsenal side means David Raya is once again preferred to Aaron Ramsdale despite not enjoying his best outing at Chelsea. Arteta's backing remains unequivocal.

I haven't seen that at all," he said when asked whether Raya was struggling with expectations since moving to Emirates Stadium from Brentford.

"That's the pressure of playing in big clubs, where you have to win and you have to be at your best, and you have someone next to you who is pushing you every single day.

"That's the debate. That's the beauty of the game as well. The fact that you have other options as well is going to make that talk more frequent."

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55 mins prior to kickoff: Sevilla are unchanged from the side that battled to a 1-1 draw against Real Madrid at the weekend.

1 hour prior to kickoff: Here's the Arsenal XI. Takehiro Tomiyasu replaced Oleksandr Zinchenko at halftime at Chelsea last weekend and gets the nod to start at left-back. Thomas Partey is absent from the matchday squad due to a muscular injury.

1 hr 30 mins prior to kickoff: Gabriel Jesus has scored in each of his first two Champions League appearances for Arsenal. If he does so tonight he will be come the first Gunner since 2010/11 to net in his first three games in the competition for the club. Think of all those great former Arsenal strikers. You didn't think the answer was Marouane Chamakh either, did you?

2 hours prior to kickoff: Hello and welcome to The Sporting News' live coverage of Sevilla vs. Arsenal in the Champions League.

Sevilla vs Arsenal lineups, team news

Sevilla are without a few fringe players but Diego Alonso should have his first-choice XI available.

Sergio Ramos has been a solid addition for Sevilla at the back, playing well over the weekend against his old employers. Alonso's XI is unchanged from that draw with Real Madrid.

Sevilla starting lineup (4-3-3): Nyland (GK) — Navas, Gudelj, Ramos, Acuna — Soumare, Sow, Rakitic — Lukebakio, En-Nesyri, Ocampos.

After suffering a relatively extensive injury crisis before the international break, Arsenal have almost all their players available. Only Jurrien Timber, who is recovering from an ACL injury, is sidelined.

Bukayo Saka is now fit to resume his traditionally heavy schedule, and William Saliba is healthy as well.

Takehiro Tomiyasu replaced Oleksandr Zinchenko at halftime against Chelsea and the Japan international gets the nod to start at left-back in Arteta's only change.

Arsenal starting lineup (4-3-3): Raya (GK) — White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tomiyasu — Rice, Jorginho, Odegaard — Saka, Jesus, Martinelli.

Sevilla vs Arsenal live stream, TV channel

The Sevilla vs. Arsenal match from the Champions League kicks off at 9:00 p.m. local time at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan in Seville.

Below are the corresponding times, TV channels, and live streams to watch the match in regions around the world

  TV channel Streaming
USA  — Paramount+, ViX
UK TNT Sports 1 discovery+
Australia  — Stan Sport
Canada  — DAZN
India  — Sony LIV, JioTV
New Zealand  – beIN Sports Connect
Malaysia  — beIN Sports Connect, sooka
Singapore  — beIN Sports Connect, StarHubTV+
Hong Kong  — beIN Sports Connect

Dom Farrell

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Dom is the senior content producer for Sporting News UK. He previously worked as fan brands editor for Manchester City at Reach Plc. Prior to that, he built more than a decade of experience in the sports journalism industry, primarily for the Stats Perform and Press Association news agencies. Dom has covered major football events on location, including the entirety of Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup in Paris and St Petersburg respectively, along with numerous high-profile Premier League, Champions League and England international matches. Cricket and boxing are his other major sporting passions and he has covered the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Wladimir Klitschko, Gennadiy Golovkin and Vasyl Lomachenko live from ringside.