Super Eagles winger Chukwueze voted man of the match as Villarreal beat Arsenal 2-1

SUPER Eagles winger Samuel Chukwueze was voted as Man of the Match in yesterday's Europa League semi final first leg after a scintillating performance that saw his Spanish team Villarreal secure a 2-1 win over English Premier League side Arsenal.

Chukwueze set up Villarreal's first goal in the fifth minute when he teed up team mate Manu Trigueros for the opener after a dazzling run down the right flank. Villarreal then made it 2-0 in the 29th minute when Raul Albiol slammed the ball home at the back post following Gerard Moreno's flick-on from a corner, giving the Spaniards a comfortable cushion with less than half an hour played.

Arsenal's nervousness was apparent in the team's stray passes and panicked touches as they attempted to play out from the back and there was a glaring lack of cutting edge upfront. With Chukwueze pulling the strings, Villarreal dominated the first half with Arsenal not mustering a shot on goal until the 26th minute, when Bukayo Saka curled wastefully over the bar.

Things got worse for Arsenal shortly afterwards when Dani Ceballos' was sent off in the 30th minute for picking up two yellow cards. At that stage the Gunners looked dead and buried but they managed to hold on and in the second half were able to come back from the dead by pulling a goal back from the penalty spot.

Nicolas Pepe scored from the spot in the 73rd minute after Saka was brought down in the penalty area to give Arsenal hope ahead of the second leg. Mikel Arteta's side now go into next Thursday's game with genuine hope of reaching a second Europa League final in three seasons and the potential of qualifying for next season's Champions League.

Even after the Arsenal goal, Villarreal still dominated play and fancied their chances of scoring again but this was hampered when they too were reduced to 10 men after Etienne Capoue shown a second yellow for a late tackle on Saka in the 80th minute. Villarreal, managed by former Arsenal boss Unai Emery, know that a 0-1 defeat at the Emirates will send them crashing out of the tournament.