Sporting CP vs Arsenal: Gunners secure 2-2 road draw in Portugal after wacky Europa League first leg

Arsenal were sloppy and disjointed at times in Real Betis vs Arsenal, but the Gunners depart Lisbon with a fortunate 2-2 draw after a wacky and wild 90 minutes against Sporting CP in the first leg of their Europa League Round of 16 matchup.

Mikel Arteta made six changes to his starting lineup, some forced and others not, knowing there are many key fixtures in the coming weeks as Arsenal fight on multiple fronts, including a fierce Premier League title chase. It showed, as the Gunners were messy in key moments, allowing Sporting to prove dangerous on the counter throughout the match.

William Saliba opened the scoring midway through the first half as he deposited a towering header into the back of the net on a corner, but Sporting equalised 12 minutes later in nearly identical fashion through Gonzalo Inacio.

The start of the second half was utterly insane, as Paulinho put Sporting in front after the Arsenal defence fell asleep. Both sides botched great chances to pick out goals before a totally fluky own-goal from Hidemasa Morita saw the Gunners draw level.

The sides will meet again next week for the reverse fixture in London, where Arsenal will fancy their chances as the home side, but Arteta may think twice about rotating the squad knowing the replacements offer a significant drop-off in quality.

As a whole, the 90 minutes were pretty insane, as both sides were sloppy in various moments. The visitors were especially mistake-prone, as Mikel Arteta's changes resulted in some disjointed play, especially at the back. New defender Jakub Kiwior was poor, and Cup goalkeeper Matt Turner also had a rough showing.

Arsenal were lucky to get the equaliser in fluky fashion, but they were good enough in moments to where the level scoreline on the whole is a fair result.

The second leg of Sporting CP vs Arsenal will take place at the Emirates next week.