Champions League | The tops and flops of Lens – Arsenal (2-1): Bollaert de gala, the double blade Wahi and Havertz

• Furious madness in Bollaert

21 years later, Bollaert hasn’t changed and that’s a good thing. The northern volcano played its role in full force on Tuesday in an evening that will remain. The Lens public, magnificent from A to Z, set the tone with a tifo which summed up the leitmotif of the evening well: “Together, let’s make our coat of arms shine in the Champions League“. They did it, together indeed. From their chants just after the opening score in London to this collective roar at the final whistle, including some crazy Corons, the Lensois public was up to the task of his reputation. And he was rewarded for it.

Perhaps this is the consequence of this crazy atmosphere. The fact remains that RC Lens transcended itself, for real, to recover from the start of the match which could have caused them to sink. Offender then scorer, Adrien Thomasson was the symbol of this RC Lens which never gives up. But he was not alone. Florian Sotoca was as delicious as he was combative, Deiver Machado had a big heart like that, and all the others were in tune, so much so that it is complicated to distribute a single bad point. This team has personality and heart. With this, they can see far.

• Gradit-Danso-Medina: what a line of three

We had to deal with this Gabriel Jesus. True to form, the Brazilian was real poison, opening the score on his first opportunity (0-1, 14th). He was right to capitalize on it because, subsequently, he was masterfully muzzled by a magnificent duo of complementarity and grinta. Kevin Danso was imperial, physically dominant, technically clean and tactically clear-sighted. At his side, Facundo Medina defined the term “grinta” better than anyone. His muscular duel, sometimes on the limit, made Gabriel Jesus almost fearful in the duel. His left paw was also very useful in the recovery. Finally, Jonathan Gradit was in his image, less visible but no less useful. His save at the very end of the match (89th) was a reminder that solidarity was a cardinal value in the North.

He really launched his Lens adventure this weekend by scoring his first goal against Strasbourg. And Tuesday evening, the most expensive recruit in the history of RC Lens simply delighted Bollaert. The former Montpellier striker was decisive on two occasions. A first time with a magnificent delivery to offset Adrien Thomasson with the equalizer. And in the 70th minute, he once again delighted the blood and gold crowd by finding the net for his first goal in the Champions League. The dream evening.

He was at fault against Seville (1-1) on the first day. And this time, Brice Samba was just decisive. Of course, he couldn’t do anything about Gabriel Jesus’ surgical strike to open the scoring. But then, the Lensois goalkeeper was imperial. And on three occasions he frustrated the Gunners. Kai Havertz (20th), Leandro Trossard (48th), Takehiro Tomiyasu (66th) and Emile Smith-Rowe (85th) all came up against the last rampart of the northern house. This victory also bears its seal.

He was uncertain for this match. But Mikel Arteta did not want to do without the services. And we understand why. Before the English international left due to injury in the 34th minute, Arsenal showed themselves to be impactful and quickly projected themselves forward. Without him, the story was completely different. With Fábio Vieira making an insignificant entry, the Gunners lacked edge. And offensive varieties. His exit ultimately felt like the turning point of the match.

• Havertz, a match still very timid

Kai Havertz remains an enigma at Arsenal so far. And it is not this outing in the North of France that will reassure London supporters. The former Chelsea striker, recruited this summer by the Gunners for 75 million euros, did not weigh in on this match. He certainly placed a strike in the 20th which deflected a cuff by Samba. But behind, he did too little given his talent and potential. It’s thin at the moment. And Lens had no reason to complain.