Arsenal 1-2 Eintracht Frankfurt: Kamada double stuns Gunners

Two goals in ten second-half minutes from Daichi Kamada stunned Arsenal to send Eintracht Frankfurt within a point of Unai Emery's Group F leaders.

The Gunners led through Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's close-range finish at the end of a dominant first-half display. A much-improved Eintracht levelled when Japan midfielder Kamada curled a sumptuous strike into the far corner of Emiliano Martínez's net ten minutes after half-time.

Shortly afterwards, Kamada collected a clearance from a corner and fired a second eye-catching effort past Martínez. Arsenal will still qualify should they avoid a heavy defeat at Standard on Matchday 6, while victory at home to winless Vitória will guarantee Eintracht's progress.

ARSENAL v FRANKFURT: AS IT HAPPENED

Reporters' views

Daichi Kamadafires in Frankfurt's winning goal©AFP/Getty Images

Andy Brassell, Arsenal
It's a disappointing night for Arsenal, undercut by bad luck with injuries and a couple of outstanding, unexpected goals from the visitors. They still lead the group but would like a result in Liege on Matchday 6 to make sure, even if qualification is still highly likely due to Standard's failure to beat Vitória SC.

James Thorogood, Frankfurt
This game could – and perhaps should – have been out of reach following the first half. After the break, though, Frankfurt dug deep and, thanks to two brilliant goals from Kamada, came from behind to ensure their UEFA Europa League fate is in their own hands heading into the final matchday.

State of play

• Arsenal stay top of Group E, and need a point at third-placed Standard Liège on Matchday 6 to secure progress; victory in Belgium would make sure of first place
• Eintracht are second, a point behind Arsenal, and will make sure of progress with victory at home to bottom club Vitória SC in their final fixture, or if Standard fail to win

Reaction

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (right) after putting Arsenal in front©AFP/Getty Images

Danny da Costa, Frankfurt defender: "We didn't mince our words at half-time when it came to the fact we needed to be a lot more courageous. We were far too complacent in the first half and lacked the confidence to be successful. In the second half you could see we believed in ourselves and that there was more desire behind our actions, which led to us winning more 50-50s."

Unai Emery, Arsenal manager: "Tonight wasn't our moment but we won a lot of matches to be top of the group. Our aim is to win away to Standard Liege to finish as first. We want to do that to build our confidence and connect with the supporters. We need to win and we lost a very good opportunity. We didn't do enough to win this match. We lost our control of the game for 15 minutes of the second half, and they scored two goals. We were better in the first half but in those 15, 20 minutes we lost control."

Emiliano Martínez, Arsenal goalkeeper: "We couldn't believe we lost the game. We had so many chances to score a second, so many one-on-ones, but they had two good chances and two shots on target. We are still top of the group but we are disappointed to have lost our first game at home because we wanted to win for the fans. We will stick together – we have a decent squad."

Key stats

Daichi Kamada celebrates his goals©Getty Images

• Eintracht's first UEFA competition win in England in their fifth visit (D1 L3)
• Kamada had scored only one goal for Eintracht before tonight
• Frankfurt have won 14 of their 17 matches in the UEFA Europa League group stage
• Arsenal have lost seven European home fixtures against German opposition, more than against teams from any other country.
• Arsenal are without a win in seven matches in all competitions (D5 L2)
• Aubameyang has scored ten goals in his 13 appearances against Frankfurt

Line-ups

Arsenal: Martínez; Mustafi (Torreira 76), David Luiz (Guendouzi 31), Sokratis; Chambers, Xhaka, Willock, Tierney; Martinelli (Özil 60), Aubameyang, Saka

Frankfurt: Ronnow; Abraham, Hasebe, Hinteregger; Da Costa, Kamada, Fernandes (Kohr 46), Sow, Kostić; Paciência, Silva (Gaćinović 46)