Arsenal set-piece coach has words on touchline with rival after Gunners get set pieced

Arsenal had a taste of their own medicine on Wednesday evening as Bayer Leverkusen scored from a corner against them.

And Leverkusen boss, Kasper Hjulmand, made sure to instantly find the Gunners’ set-piece coach to have a cheeky word.

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Mikel Arteta‘s men are hoping to boost their chances of a quadruple this season in their Champions League last 16 tie.

But they fell behind against their German opposition just after half-time in the first leg at the BayArena.

And the fashion they conceded was a very rare one, as they were beaten by their own game in Europe.

Leverkusen’s Robert Andrich arrived unmarked at the back post from a deep, swinging corner to head into the back of the net.

It was Arsenal’s first goal conceded from a corner in a Champions League match since November 2024 against Sporting Lisbon.

Following the goal, cameras then showed Leverkusen boss Hjulmand rushing over to speak to the Gunners’ set-piece coach Nicolas Jover.

Jover has built a reputation as one of the best in the business, with his side netting over 30 times from set pieces this season.

But after getting the better of his tactics in a rare feat, Hjulmand made sure to go and have a word, with the pair seemingly speaking in good jest as they laughed together.

Andrich’s header looked to be proving to be a costly one for Arsenal, with Leverkusen leading 1-0 heading into the final stages.

However, a late Kai Havertz penalty against his old club helped extend their unbeaten streak to 11 games, with the tie ending 1-1.

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Set-piece stats

Bayer Leverkusen clearly came out to stop Arsenal’s set-piece threat, even posting on their social media about it.

In a post on X, the German club showed an edited picture of a sign on the pitch at the BayArena, reading: “NO CORNERS ALLOWED!!!”

They wrote ‘Worth a try’ in the caption and then later, after the goal, commented on it again, saying: “Well, this is awkward…”

Leverkusen ironically scored from a corner themselves, but also only let Arsenal take three corners during the entire game.

The Gunners didn’t have any first-half corners at all, which was just the fifth time in 47 matches this season that they haven’t had one.

And it was the first time ever that they didn’t have one in Europe.

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Havertz saves Arsenal

In his first game back in Leverkusen against his former side, Havertz stepped up to score under immense pressure.

The German netted from the spot in the 89th minute, to claim what could be a crucial draw heading into the last 16 second leg.

He now has more Champions League goals against Bayer Leverkusen (one) than he scored for them in eight games (none).

The Gunners will now just have to win at the Emirates Stadium in the second leg next Tuesday to reach the quarter-finals.

talkSPORT will have live commentary of the game next week.

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