With newfound confidence and in front of a wild public, Lens celebrated the return of the Champions League at home by winning this Tuesday, October 3 against Arsenal two goals to one.
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It has been 21 years since the Bollaert stadium last hosted a Champions League match. This match against the Londoners, already at the top of their group after their trip against PSV Eindhoven (4-0), was the peak of their career for the Lens players. And the draw obtained by Courage in Seville (1-1) during the first day of C1, two weeks ago, had proven that the Sang et Or were capable of playing in the big leagues.
This evening, the Artesian club got off to a bad start to their duel despite a thunderous start to the match. An error from Lensois Adrien Thomasson, who missed his back pass, allowed Bukayo Saka to recover the ball and find Gabriel Jesus at the edge of the area. The leather ends in the small left net of Brice Samba (14th).
But Adrien Thomasson will end up redeeming himself by equalizing with a curling shot from the right which lodges in the small right net (25th). The Little Thumbs of this competition return to the locker room after having upset the Gunners, with a budget three times higher, reigning vice-champions of England and current third.
Bollaert fulfilled
Football can sometimes be something other than a story of money: a story of desire. In the second half, Lens panicked the Bollaert stands with a strike from Abdul Samed at the edge of the area. Raya is beaten, but the ball just flirts with the right post (64th). After a masterful save from Brice Samba with his right foot, Lens finally doubled the lead thanks to Sepe Elye Wahi who took advantage of a cross from Florian Sotoca to regain the ball with a touch from the right to the penalty spot. The action ends in the left net (69th). The people of the North are delighted.
Lens, who took the lead in Group B, certainly won “the match” of the year against Arsenal, undefeated since the start of the season. Since the meeting in Andalusia, the Lensois have won their first two victories of the season in Ligue 1, against Toulouse (2-1) then at Strasbourg (1-0), a sign of a revival after a poor start (four defeats in five matches), which had caused it to sink to last place in the championship for a time.