Champions League

Round of 16

B04 Leverkusen Bayer Leverkusen - ARS Arsenal Arsenal

Leverkusen Bayer Leverkusen

Arsenal Arsenal

89'
K. Havertz
R. Andrich
46'

BayArena

Halil Umut Meler

Full-time: Bayer Leverkusen 1-1 Arsenal

It looked destined to be a famous night in Leverkusen until Kai Havertz cancelled out Robert Andrich's opener. Kasper Hjulmand's side can hold their heads high though after going toe-to-toe with the English Premier League leaders - and they are well in the tie ahead of next week's second leg in London.

End of second half

Full-time

90'

+ 4

Yellow card

Alejandro Grimaldo

90'

+ 4

Late bookings

The Arsenal goalscorer and Grimaldo are booked amid jostling from a late Arsenal corner.

90'

+ 4

Yellow card

Kai Havertz

90'

+ 1

Into stoppage time

Three additional minutes are indicated.

89'

Havertz levels!

The former Leverkusen man scores from the spot on his return to the BayArena, smashing past the diving Janis Blaswich. That's a tough one for the Bundesliga side to take when they were so close to a 1-0 win...

89'

Kai Havertz

GOAL!

1:1

Penalty

88'

Penalty to Arsenal

Malik Tillman fouls Madueke, and the English side will have a chance to level from the spot.

84'

Chances at both ends

Aleix García floats a free-kick towards Andrich, but the goalscorer can't connect this time before the ball runs out for a goal-kick. Then Timber heads over at the other end following a cross from the left.

82'

Substitution

Gabriel Jesus

Eberechi Eze

82'

Late changes

Arsenal freshen up their attack while Hjulmand brings the experienced Jonas Hofmann and Ezequiel Fernández on.

82'

Substitution

Jonas Hofmann

Martin Terrier

82'

Substitution

Ezequiel Fernández

Exequiel Palacios

78'

Corner cleared away

Madueke whips in another corner, but Tapsoba is there to head it away to safety. Arsenal can't quite find a killer ball in the final third, as the middle of the pitch remains very congested.

Here comes Havertz

The former Leverkusen star, who played for the club between 2016 and 2020, is on for Arsenal. Can he get on the scoresheet against his former employer?

74'

Substitution

Kai Havertz

Viktor Gyökeres

74'

Substitution

Malik Tillman

Ibrahim Maza

70'

20 minutes to go

Arsenal continue to search for a way past this stubborn Leverkusen defence. They are dominating the ball once again, but look most threatening whenever the tricky Madueke embarks on a mazy run forward.

69'

Yellow card

Martín Zubimendi

67'

Set-piece threat blunted

So far, Hjulmand's side have dealt well with every dangerous Declan Rice free-kick. The Gunners have only had one corner-kick, and Blaswich was equal to it with a strong punch away.

63'

Yellow card

Exequiel Palacios

63'

Third Leverkusen player booked

Palacios is the latest player to pick up a yellow card for timewasting.

60'

Madueke replaces Saka

It's a curious move from Arteta, who decides to take off his own captain on the hour mark. There is no indication of any injury, although Saka has struggled somewhat since the break.

60'

Substitution

Noni Madueke

Bukayo Saka

59'

Poku booked

The wing-back tries to stay tight on Martinelli just outside his own box, but his challenge on the Brazilian results in a free-kick for the Gunners.

58'

Yellow card

Ernest Poku

54'

Arsenal yet to get going

Leverkusen are not allowing the visitors to build up any sort of momentum. Saka has been dispossessed twice in quick succession, under pressure from Grimaldo and Tapsoba - who have been excellent so far.

50'

Leverkusen want more

Far from sitting back and protecting their lead, the hosts are pressing forward in search of another goal. Grimaldo, after assisting the opener, looks transformed this half.

Bayer take the lead!

What a start to the half! Grimaldo forces a fine save from Raya, and the resulting corner is headed home powerfully at the back-post by captain Andrich. After all the pre-match talk around corners, it's Bayer who score from one!

46'

Robert Andrich

GOAL!

1:0

Kick-off!

Half-time: Leverkusen 0-0 Arsenal

A quiet first half comes to an end at the BayArena. The Gunners have created the best chance so far through Martinelli, who struck the crossbar after a slick team move. However, Bayer are still firmly in this tie, having created some decent openings in the break through Maza and Kofane. Hjulmand will surely be happy with his side's efforts, but they have a big 45 minutes to come.

Half-time

43'

First corner for Leverkusen

Kofane takes on the whole Arsenal defense on the break, holding off challenges before playing the ball out to Maza. His shot is blocked, and Bayer get their first chance to put Arsenal under some serious pressure from a corner-kick.

Five minutes until half-time

Both sides are cancelling each other out as we enter the final five minutes of the half. Arsenal are once again dominating the ball, but Leverkusen's structured low-block is thwarting the opposition attackers for the time being.

38'

Bayer lacking end product

The hosts have got into some good positions so far, but all too often, their final ball hasn't been good enough. The latest culprit is Grimaldo, whose attempted through-ball for Kofane rolls harmlessly out of play.

Battle of the Number 9s

Both strikers have started the game strongly. Gyökeres has proved to be a handful for the Bayer backline, while Kofane's pace and direct running appears to be Leverkusen's most potent weapon so far.

30'

Respite for Bayer

The hosts are starting to grow into the game as we reach the half-hour mark. A good period of possession ends in a trademark Grimaldo cross, which whizzes just wide of Raya's right post.

27'

Martinelli picks up a yellow

The Arsenal forward, who has been very impressive so far, is booked for preventing Bayer from launching a counter-attack.

26'

Yellow card

Gabriel Martinelli

24'

Hincapié tests Blaswich

Martinelli is causing problems once again down the left. A botched Poku clearance sees the ball fall at the feet of Hincapié inside the Bayer box, but from a narrow angle, he strikes the ball straight at the Leverkusen keeper.

Martinelli strikes the bar!

That was close! Arsenal move the ball around beautifully on the counter, eventually picking out Martinelli on the left side of the Bayer box. He shifts the ball onto his left foot and shoots, but his effort smacks the crossbar and rolls to safety.

15'

Decent opening for Maza

The young midfielder drives forward with the ball on the break. He feeds it into Kofane, who quickly returns it to him inside the Arsenal box. Maza then shoots, but his slightly scuffed effort goes well wide.

12'

Arsenal re-establish control

The game has settled into a pattern, with Arsenal dominating the ball, and Bayer looking for any opportunity to hit them on the break. Neither side has created a big chance yet.

First shot for Bayer

The home side are enjoying a sustained spell of possession for the first time tonight. Kofane collects the ball just outside the Arsenal box, and tries his luck from range. However, his shot is straight at Raya, who easily catches it.

Arsenal on the front foot

The Gunners have been the brighter of the two sides in the opening exchanges. They've already had two free-kicks, which were impressively dealt with by Leverkusen.

Andrich booked

Gyökeres does brilliantly well to spin away from Andrich on the edge of the penalty area, but the Bayer captain subsequently wrestles him to the ground. The defender picks up an early yellow, and the visitors pick up a free-kick in a dangerous area.

Yellow card

Robert Andrich

We're underway!

Arsenal get the ball moving in Leverkusen. The hosts are in their all-black strip, while Arsenal are in red and white.

Kick-off!

More on that Arsenal team

Gunners boss Arteta also makes one change to the side that beat Brighton 1-0 in their most recent Premier League fixture. Saliba comes into the starting XI in place of Mosquera, who drops to the bench. Hincapié lines up against his former side at left-back.

More on that Leverkusen team

The hosts make just one change from the side that drew 3-3 with Freiburg at the weekend, as Palacios replaces his compatriot Fernández in the middle of the park. Schick, who is Leverkusen's joint-top scorer in Europe with four, starts from the bench tonight.

Starting line-up: Arsenal FC

David Raya Goalkeeper

Arsenal subs

Arrizabalaga, Ranson, Mosquera, White, Jesus, Nørgaard, Madueke, Havertz, Califiori, Lewis-Skelly, Dowman, Salmon

Starting line-up: Bayer 04 Leverkusen

Janis Blaswich Goalkeeper

Leverkusen subs

Omlin, Lomb, Fernández, Hofmann, Tillman, Schick, Oermann, Tape, Culbreath

1:36

Watch: Kasper Hjulmand's pre-match press conference

Watch the best bits from the Leverkusen head coach's press conference ahead of this encounter.

Mikel Arteta on Havertz returning to his old club

"I did speak to [Kai Havertz], he spent 10 incredible years here. The way he talks about [Leverkusen], the people here, the culture, what he's learned and how hard this journey was for him to continue his next chapter in England, he had a lot of learnings. I'm glad to see how people are receiving him the moment he's walking around the building, and I'm not surprised."

Mikel Arteta on facing Bayer Leverkusen

"You start the second part of the campaign and you know what is at stake. We start to play games where you are in or you are out, there is no margin for manoeuvre, and we're going to face a very difficult contest tomorrow against a really good team."

Leverkusen's Christian Kofane on the test ahead

"I'm really excited about the game, Arsenal are a great team. We have trained well and want to give everything we can."

Kasper Hjulmand on the challenge of facing Arsenal

"Arsenal are maybe the best team in Europe right now. It's the toughest test, but we are excited by this opportunity. We need to bring our best performance."

Kasper Hjulmand on Leverkusen harnessing home support

"We want to enjoy this game at home with our fans. Arsenal are the big favourites in this duel. We'll give everything to create a good starting position for the return leg."

A final farewell?

Piero Hincapié could feature for Arsenal against his parent club, in what might turn out to be his final game in Leverkusen. The Colombian defender is currently on loan at the Gunners, who have an option to sign him permanently from Bayer at the end of the season. Hincapié was an integral member of Leverkusen's Bundesliga title-winning side in 2023/24.

0:59

Watch: Freiburg 3-3 Leverkusen - highlights

Leverkusen came from behind twice to lead, only to concede a late Matthias Ginter equaliser in Freiburg.

Arsenal win ahead of UCL match-up

Arsenal beat League One side Mansfield 2-1 on Saturday to reach the FA Cup quarter-final as Mikel Arteta made a host of changes ready for the encounter against Leverkusen. Eberechi Eze scored the winner for the Gunners.

Arsenal's record against German clubs

Arsenal have played 45 games against German opposition down the years, with their first match-up coming in the 1971/72 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup against Cologne (the English team progressed on away goals after the sides won a leg apiece). Their two biggest defeats in continental competition have come against Bayern, who prevailed 5-1 in both the 2015/16 and 2016/17 Champions League.

Looking further ahead

Should Leverkusen progress from this tie, they will come up against either Sporting Lisbon or Bodø/Glimt in the quarter-finals.

4:32

Watch: The best of Havertz in the Bundesliga

Enjoy Kai Havertz's best moments in Germany's top flight before his move to the English Premier League.

Familiar faces

There are two former Leverkusen players returning to face their former club. Kai Havertz came through the Werkself's youth system, ultimately scoring 46 goals in 150 appearances for the first team, while Piero Hincapié was a member of the 2023/24 Bundesliga and DFB Cup-winning team. Eagled-eyed supporters will also remember Viktor Gyökeres, who scored seven goals in 26 Bundesliga 2 appearances for St. Pauli earlier in his career.

Leverkusen's record against English clubs

The German side have a strong recent record against their English counterparts, losing just one of their past seven such matches and progressing from four of their past five knockout meetings with Premier League opposition. All in all, they have won on six of the 26 occasions they have come up against English teams, losing 13. This season, they have already beaten Manchester City and drawn with Newcastle United.

Head-to-head

These two sides have met twice before, in the second group stage of the 2001/02 edition of this competition. At Highbury, Arsenal's former stadium, Leverkusen fell too a heavy defeat before drawing 1-1 in front of their own supporters. Despite those results, Leverkusen still progressed and ultimately reached the final, where they lost 2-1 to Real Madrid.

1:19

Watch: Leverkusen's top 5 Bundesliga goals in 2025/26

The Werkself will be hoping they can reproduce some of these strikes against the Gunners.

2:13

Watch: Simon Rolfes reacts to last 16 draw

Leverkusen's managing director of sport shared his thoughts after his side were drawn to face the Premier League leaders.

Arsenal - the story so far

The Gunners were a force to be reckoned with in the league phase. They won all eight of their games, including a 3-1 win over Bayern Munich at the Emirates Stadium, to pick up a maximum 24 points and qualify automatically for the last 16. Additionally, they topped the goalscoring charts with 23 strikes, while conceding the fewest (four).

Leverkusen - the story so far

Leverkusen kicked off the league phase with back-to-back draws against Copenhagen and PSV, before a chastening 7-2 home defeat against reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain left them in a fight to reach the knockout stages. However, the Werkself picked up 10 points from their remaining five games, including a 2-0 victory at Manchester City, to qualify for the play-off round. Leverkusen were beaten by Olympiacos earlier in the competition, but they won 2-0 on aggregate in the two-legged affair to set up this tie.

Welcome

Follow all the action and live build-up from Bayer Leverkusen's UEFA Champions League last-16 first leg against Arsenal at the BayArena.