Kai Havertz scored a late penalty as Arsenal came from behind to draw with Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at the BayArena.
The German forward who spent 10 years at Leverkusen before moving to Chelsea for £71m in 2020, slotted the ball past Janis Blaswich in the 89th minute after Noni Madueke had been brought down by Malik Tillman.
Arsenal had gone behind for the first time in the competition this season when Robert Andrich headed in a well-worked Alex Grimaldo corner just one minute into the second half.
The Gunners came into this match with an 100% record in the Champions League this season and boss Mikel Arteta looked to take charge of the tie as he made 10 changes to the side that comfortably beat Mansfield in the FA Cup fifth round at the weekend.
Arsenal started well and came close to the opener when Gabriel Martinelli – who has six Champions League goals this term – was found by Viktor Gyokeres and slammed a shot against the crossbar.
But Leverkusen defended resolutely and almost caught the visitors cold at the start of the second half with a well-worked kick-off routine that ended with a header from Martin Terrier being tipped over by keeper David Raya.
But from the resulting corner, Andrich was left unmarked at the back post to power in a header.
Arteta introduced Madueke and Havertz from the bench after going behind and both were involved in the leveller.
England winger Madueke’s strong run into the box was ended by a stretching challenge from Tillman and a penalty was awarded much to the dismay of the home support.
Havertz showed poise to slot his spot-kick into the corner and the 26-year-old forward’s celebration was muted against the club he joined as a youngster in 2010.
Despite losing their winning record in the competition, Arsenal will be pleased to have snatched a draw and go into next Tuesday’s return leg as favourites.
Arsenal analysis: Gunners show character in comeback
Having gone close to the opener through Martinelli, Arsenal had put Leverkusen under pressure early on.
Goalscorer Andrich picked up a yellow card for a foul on Gyokeres and the centre-back was fortunate not to see another, and subsequently be sent off, following a block off the ball on the Sweden striker.
But the match drifted after that and the Leverkusen midfield of Aleix Garcia and Exequiel Palacios were excellent when they had possession, while they did a good job of disrupting Arsenal’s attacks.
Despite flashes of good play, the Gunners could only register one shot on target before the break and had no corners given their strength on set-pieces this season.
They were also surprised by the positivity of Leverkusen’s second-half start and the hosts grew in confidence after going ahead.
Christian Kofane caused centre-back Gabriel problems all night, while Bukayo Saka was far from his best and replaced by Madueke on the hour mark, with the substitute making a massive impact.
With four trophies still within reach in this campaign, the pressure and expectation will only increase on the Premier League leaders.
They managed to show character to come back in Germany, and the last time these two sides met in the Champions League, Arsenal won the home leg in the 2001-02 group stage 4-1 after a 1-1 draw in Leverkusen.
What’s next for these teams?
Arsenal host Everton in the Premier League on Saturday, 14 March (17:30 GMT), before the return leg of their last-16 tie against Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday, 17 March (20:00 GMT).
Leverkusen welcome Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich to the BayArena on Saturday (14:30 GMT) in the league.
