Inter 1-0 Arsenal: Calhanoglu on the spot as Gunners lose again

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Hakan Calhanoglu maintained his perfect penalty record for Inter to secure a 1-0 victory over Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Neither side had conceded a goal in their opening three games in the competition this season, but Arsenal’s defence was finally breached after Mikel Merino was punished for a handball inside his own box shortly before half-time.

Calhanoglu calmly beat David Raya from the spot for his 19th successful conversion from 19 penalties in all competitions since joining Inter.

The much-changed Nerazzurri were good value for their lead at that stage, having earlier hit the post through Denzel Dumfries, yet Arsenal then laid siege to the home goal.

While Kai Havertz was denied by Yann Sommer and saw another effort deflected wide, Inter defended superbly and held on for another win that takes them to 10 points from four matches.

Arsenal are three points back, outside the top eight, but at least welcomed captain Martin Odegaard back from injury as a late substitute.

Inter 1-0 Arsenal

Arsenal suffered their third defeat across their last six games with a 1-0 UEFA Champions League loss against Internazionale.

Look back at the match via the Opta data with our Inter vs Arsenal stats page: https://t.co/e4KUJwpUN6 pic.twitter.com/A0KW7oQNZN

— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) November 6, 2024

Data Debrief: Stubborn Inter frustrate Arsenal again

For Arsenal, this felt like a familiar, frustrating story. Just as against Newcastle United in the Premier League on Saturday, the Gunners dominated the possession (63%), attempted more shots (21) and created more expected goals (2.2) than their opponents but could find no way through in a 1-0 defeat.

Yet this also followed a trend for Inter, who came into this match without having conceded a goal in the Champions League this season despite facing 53 shots. They have now kept four consecutive clean sheets in the European Cup for the first time in their history.

Odegaard might have been the man to break down that dominant Nerazzurri defence, but he appeared only as a 93rd-minute substitute and touched the ball just once.