Arsenal 1-0 Twente: Mead's strike ensures Slegers' side of knockout place
It was far from a classic performance for Arsenal against Twente but their three points against Twente proved vital in the Champions League.
Beth Mead's early goal secured Arsenal a 1-0 win over Twente in the Women's Champions League to book their place in the knockout phase.
Arsenal were far from convincing, but Renee Slegers' side ensured themselves at least a play-off spot, knowing they need another win in their final game to try and finish in the top four.
The hosts piled on the early pressure, with both Mariona Caldentey and Mead seeing efforts cleared off the line within seconds of each other just eight minutes in.
But Mead found the breakthrough 10 minutes later, after brilliant work from Alessia Russo allowed her to get away a deflected effort which nestled in the bottom corner.
Twente offered little in terms of a fightback, managing just a single shot in each half, while Arsenal saw chances go begging, with Russo the main culprit.
She missed three big opportunities in the second half, including a powerful header that rattled the crossbar in the 79th minute before Frida Maanum's late strike was heroically blocked.
Elsewhere, Real Madrid moved into the top four after a 2-0 win over Wolfsburg despite having a player sent off in stoppage time of each half. Maelle Lakrar and Iris Ashley both saw red, but Maria Mendez and Linda Caicedo got the all-important goals.
Juventus sit top of the table after thumping St. Polten 5-0, while Paris Saint-Germain's struggles continued in a goalless draw with Leuven.
Data Debrief: Arsenal attack falls flat
Arsenal certainly had the chances to put this game to bed before the final whistle, getting 15 shots away worth 1.54 expected goals (xG), with five of those on target.
They also had 50 touches in the opposition box, compared to three for Twente, and 91 final-third entries, but they could not turn their dominance into more goals.
It is only the second time in the Champions League this season that the team scoring first in one of Arsenal's games has gone on to win, and those three points turned out to be vital.
