Arsenal edged past Porto in the Penalty shootout to qualify for the UCL quarterfinals

Commotion broke out as soon as the clash between Arsenal and Porto match ended. The managers of the two respective sides, Mikel Arteta and Sergio Conceicao, were involved in an argument when Porto's coach claimed Arteta spoke bitter words about his family. EPL side Arsenal hosted Porto in the second leg of the Champions League Round of 16 at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday(12th March 2024).

Arsenal won with a score of 1-0 in normal time, through a goal from Leandro Trossard. The Gunners lost 0-1 in the first leg at Estádio do Dragão, Porto but were unable to equalize the aggregate at 1-1. The match continued into extra time, but there were no additional goals. The duel went to a penalty shootout and Arsenal won 4-2, the Hosts Arsenal advanced to the quarter-finals of the 2023/2024 UCL. This success was then coloured by controversy after a commotion broke out between Arteta and Conceicao.

A commotion between Arteta and Conceicao occurred after the penalty shootout and two managers got into an argument, before being separated by people nearby. The 49-year-old head coach then explained what happened between him and Arteta at the press conference. Conceicao claims there were inappropriate words from Arteta's mouth towards him.

"What Arteta said, turned to the bench during the game and insulted my family in Spanish," Conceicao said in a press conference, quoted by BBC Sports. Conceicao couldn't control his emotions because of Arteta's attitude. According to him, this should not have happened. "He must focus on training his team and the results are unfair. We deserved to qualify," continued Conceicao. Quoted from The Athletic, Mikel Arteta was not prepared to respond to the claims made by Conceicao. When asked a question about allegedly insulting Conceicao’s family, the man from Spain only answered with two words. "No comment," said Mikel Arteta.

Meanwhile, EPL side the Gunners officials clarified Conceicao's accusations against Arteta and they said Conceicao misunderstood Arteta's words. Arsenal ensured that there were no insulting words from Arteta. Six teams have been confirmed to have qualified for the quarter-finals of the 2023/2024 Champions League.

There are still two slots that four other teams will contest. The following is a list of teams that have qualified for the quarter-finals:

• Bayern Munich
• Real Madrid
• Manchester City
• PSG
• Arsenal
• Barcelona