Gunners surge back to beat Hamburg
Arsene Wenger's men came back from Rafael van der Vaart's early goal
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Tuesday, 21, Nov 2006 11:03
Arsenal overcame Bundesliga side Hamburg 3-1 in Champions League Group G as goals from Emmanuel Eboue and Julio Bapitista in the last seven minutes sealed victory.
The Emirates Stadium suffered an early shock however when Rafael Van der Vaart, who had caught the England defence napping last week when on Netherlands duty, stole in to score after four minutes.
The former Ajax starlet sent a shot screaming into the net after wrongfooting the home defence with a beautiful feint.
Alexander Hleb came closest to a first-half leveller for Arsene Wenger's men when he saw his shot rebound off the bar after swapping passes with Cesc Fabregas.
But as the players trooped off at half-time it seemed with the Gunners still trailing it seemed that the north London side may be in for another frustrating home encounter.
Robin van Persie's strike seven minutes after the break eased concerns on the hosts' bench as he ghosted on to Fabregas's through-ball and slipped the ball past the 'keeper.
From then on Arsenal's pressure was relentless as they pressed their opponents back in search of a killer blow.
Substitute Theo Walcott's late cameo proved the key to unlocking victory as he played in Ivorian defender Eboue on 83 minutes and then sent over a delicious cross for Baptista to muscle home two minutes from time.