Arteta holds off Trossard as tempers flare after Arsenal beat Porto in a shootout

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MIKEL ARTETA kept Leandro Trossard in check during heated scenes at the final whistle after Arsenal cruised into the Champions League quarter-finals.

Winger Trossard looked in no mood to back down as Porto players confronted him after the Gunners’ 4-2 win on penalties.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta talks to his own player Leandro Trossard in a bid to calm post-match clashesCredit: Reuters

Gunners scorer Trossard was the unwanted center of attentionCredit: Reuters

Porto chief Sergio Conceicao appeared dissatisfied with ArtetaCredit: Reuters

Arsenal boss Arteta had to grab the goalscorer around the waist in the middle of the Emirates pitch and send him off.

But tensions later rose again when Porto chief Sergio Conceicao accused his counterpart of “insulting my family” during the match.

Both managers were previously booked for protesting against second-half decisions in normal time before a goalless extra half-hour.

And the flare at the end typified a night that saw the Gunners reach the quarter-finals in fiery fashion for the first time since 2010.

Trossard had struck brilliantly in the 41st minute to give Arsenal a 1-0 win and a 1-1 draw.

David Raya’s two saves in the shootout sunk the combative Portuguese visitors.

And after confrontations between players on the field, Conceicao made his astonishing claims.

The Portugal boss said: “Arteta turned to the bench during the match and insulted my family in Spanish.

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Trossard and Porto players were involved in a heated argumentCredit: Reuters

“I told him that the person he insulted is no longer with us.

“Let him worry about training his team, which has more than enough quality to play a lot better.”

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Arteta, meanwhile, defended his difficult moments, especially to the officials, saying: “There is a lot at stake, you defend your team in every decision.

“You want every decision to go your way and that’s part of the game.”

And while he focused on a triumph he was ‘so proud’ of, he suggested an electric atmosphere fueled by home fans was the solution.

The Spaniard said: “We love them, the energy they gave us helped us throughout the match. They made us win – it’s as simple as that.”

Reaching the last eight made Arteta “so happy – it’s been fourteen years, a long time for a club like Arsenal”.

And referring to Raya’s exploits, he added: “We really had to dig in today and find the magic moment that we found.

“It’s very difficult to play against them because they are a very competitive team, a very good team.”

Trossard summed up Arsenal’s relief when he tweeted celebratory photos of himself at X alongside the words: “QUARTER-FINAL!!”

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