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Gunners squeeze Valencia Arsenal comes back for 2-1 Champions League win
Updated: Wednesday April 04, 2001 5:52 PM
LONDON (AP) -- Two goals in two minutes by Thierry Henry and Ray Parlour gained Arsenal a 2-1 first leg victory in the Champions Cup quarterfinal on Wednesday after last season's runner-up, Valencia, had gone ahead at Highbury. Roberto Ayala gave Valencia the lead with a goal four minutes before the interval before strikes by Henry and Parlour in the 58th and 60th minutes turned the game Arsenal's way. Arsene Wenger's team now goes to Spain in two weeks time with a slim lead while the Spanish team has the satisfaction of an away goal. "In the second half we recovered well," Wenger said. "We had clear chances to score three and four goals. But now we have got to try and win the [second leg] game. "To come from 1-0 down and win the game shows tremendous character." Dennis Bergkamp, who rarely plays in Arsenal's games abroad because of his fear of flying, missed the game because of an Achilles tendon injury but the Gunners otherwise had a full strength lineup with Nigerian striker Kwankwo Kanu and Thierry Henry in attack. French midfielder Patrick Vieira should have put the Gunners ahead in the 15th minute when, from barely two yards (meters) out, he headed against the crossbar from a left wing corner. A follow up shot from countryman Henry was blocked by a defender and Valencia survived. The Spaniards went close when Ayala headed wide from Gaizka Mendieta's right wing corner and, when Argentina forward Kily Gonzalez broke down the left, his deflected cross beat Seaman but Juan Sanchez could only fire into the side of the net at the far post. Valencia goalkeeper Santiago Canizares saved an Henry free kick at the foot of the post but Arsenal's veteran England goalkeeper David Seaman kept out efforts from Mendieta and John Carew. Seaman made another block from Carew in the 36th minute with the striker's follow up shot hitting the post before he was beaten four minutes before half time. Kily Gonzalez floated a pass out to Mendieta on the right and his cross caused chaos in the Arsenal defense. The ball came clear to Ayala who fired past Seaman from close range. Goalscorer Ayala was unlucky when he appeared to get a yellow card which would rule him out of the second leg in Valencia when the foul on Kanu was clearly by Jocelyn Angloma. Arsenal turned the game around with two goals in two minutes. The equalizer came when Kanu failed to control Sylvain Wiltord's left wing free kick but the ball rolled to Robert Pires. His deft backheel beat the offside trap and Henry was well placed to fire past Canizares. Two minutes later Parlour won the ball in midfield and ran forward barely a few yards before launching a 30-yard (meter) drive that flew past Canizares into the roof of the net. Arsenal twice went close to adding more goals when Henry got free only for Canizares to race off his line to smother and then the Valencia keeper blocked the French striker's angled shot with his boot. SummaryScorers: Arsenal - Thierry Henry 58, Ray Parlour 60 Valencia - Fabian Ayala 41 Halftime: 0-1; Attendance: 35,104 Teams: Arsenal: 1-David Seaman; 2-Lee Dixon; 5-Martin Keown; 6-Tony Adams; 29-Ashley Cole; 8-Fredrik Ljungberg (11-Sylvain Wiltord 46); 4-Patrick Vieira; 15-Ray Parlour; 7-Robert Pires; 14-Thierry Henry; 25-Nwankwo Kanu (12-Lauren 84) Valencia: 1-Santiago Canizares; 20-Jocelyn Angloma; 12-Fabian Ayala; 2-Mauricio Pellegrino; 15-Amedeo Carboni; 6-Gaizka Mendieta (14-Vicente 89); 19-Ruben Baraja; 18-Kily Gonzalez; 35-Pablo Aimar (10-Miguel Angulo 68); 7-John Carew; 17-Juan Sanchez Referee: Dick Jol (Netherlands)
Reuters contributed to this report.
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