Outside the Clock End, where the Sporting supporters were streaming into the ground in their green and white hoops and the smoke of their flares turned the air acrid, some of the greats of Arsenal stared down on the scene from a giant mural.
Tony Adams was there, leading the troops into battle, his shoulder to a cannon. David Rocastle was by his side. Martin Keown looked wide-eyed with aggression. Frank McLintock was there, too.
It looked like one of those masterpieces of Soviet-era iconography, heroes of the proletariat coming to the aid of the motherland in its hour of need, square-jawed and upright, never doubting, never yielding.
How Arsenal wanted to be hewn in that image in this Champions League quarter final second leg against Sporting. How they wanted to be square-jawed and courageous, how they wanted to banish all the nerves and tensions that have wracked them these past few weeks.
How they wanted to make a statement against Sporting to fill them with courage and belief as they prepare to head north at the weekend for the showdown with Manchester City at the Etihad that will go a long way to deciding the destination of the Premier League title this season.
But Arsenal did not play like the heroes of yesteryear. They were tentative again, just as they had been in the defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday that has thrown their pursuit of their first domestic title for 22 years into doubt.
They were nervous again. They rode their luck again. They looked full of fear again. They put their fans through the wringer again. They squeezed through in the end courtesy of this twitchy goalless draw that gave them a 1-0 aggregate victory, but it was hardly the rousing performance they were hoping for.
It will hold no fears for the mentality monster Diego Simeone and the Atletico Madrid team Arsenal will meet in the semi-finals. And it will certainly not daunt Pep Guardiola and his City players as they wait to put Arsenal to the test in Manchester.
Mikel Arteta had issued another rallying cry to fans and players before the game at the start of a pivotal week in the club’s season. He bid them all banish their nerves and hurl themselves into the collision with Sporting.
‘No fear. Pure fire,’ the Arsenal manager said. ‘That’s what I want to see from the players, from the people, from myself. That’s it. Go for it because the opportunity is unbelievable. We are in April, we have an incredible opportunity ahead of us. Let’s confront it, let’s go for it by really putting absolutely everything into it.’
And before the match, a tifo in the North Bank rose above the supporters with a picture of Jurrien Timber, Declan Rice, Leandro Trossard, Martin Odegaard and Noni Madueke and the legend: ‘History in Our Sights’. What kind of history is still open to interpretation.
Arsenal had started well, without creating anything resembling a chance. Sporting grew into the game, without creating anything resembling a chance. The first 20 minutes passed in a series of skirmishes. The home crowd grew fretful.
Arsenal made a mess of a promising free kick midway through the half. Declan Rice tried to play a quick pass to Eberechi Eze but it was stolen from him on the edge of the area and Sporting set up a lightning counter.
The biggest cheer of the night so far came when Gabriel Martinelli sprinted back and outpaced Geny Catamo who had looked as if he were through on goal. Martinelli was applauded for his industry. Arsenal fans longed for him to show that speed in attack.
Arsenal continued to dominate possession but they continued to make their supporters nervous, too. David Raya conjured unwanted echoes of the Bournemouth defeat by playing a short pass straight to Catamo on the edge of the Arsenal box a few minutes before half-time. Catamo tried to play in Luis Suarez but overhit his pass.
Arsenal escaped. A couple of minutes before half-time, they escaped again. Maxi Araujo floated a cross deep to the back post where Catamo met it on the volley and hit it back across Raya. Raya was beaten but Catamo’s shot cannoned off the face of the post and bounced away to safety.
Half-time gave Arsenal fans a chance to stare up at the television screens on the concourses and wonder at the openness and adventure on view from the highlights of the other Wednesday night semi-final between Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
All Arsenal’s adventure seems to have disappeared these past few weeks. All their confidence seems to have gone. All their ruthlessness from set-pieces seems to have left them.
They are missing Bukayo Saka sorely. That much is certain. There is still no word on a date for his return. They are missing Martin Odegaard, too. And the influence of Jurrien Timber has become more and more obvious the longer he has been absent.
But Arsenal were supposed to have the playing resources to cope with whatever injuries were thrown at them this season. They had two world-class players for every position. The best squad in the world game. But it hasn’t looked like that in the past few weeks.
All the magic of earlier in the season has been stripped away from them. They played like a team without inspiration against Sporting. It was hard, frankly, to see where a goal was going to come from for the home team.
Viktor Gyokeres had had a quiet game and he only lasted ten minutes into the second half before he was replaced by Kai Havertz. Martinelli lifted a shot over the bar, Noni Madueke drilled a shot into the side-netting. Arsenal showed signs of improvement.
Madueke was substituted after an hour after a collision with an opponent near the half-way line but when the home supporters realised who was to replace him, it was greeted with the biggest cheer of the evening.
Max Dowman, still just 16, ran on to the pitch and a surge of optimism went around The Emirates. Dowman represents youth and hope and fearlessness to these fans. Arsenal have become a club reliant on a teenager to breathe confidence into them.
Arsenal continued to live dangerously. Raya tried to play a quick pass to Gabriel and hoofed the ball straight into touch. Nerves and haste. Nerves and haste. A minute later, Catamo’s volley took a deflection and as Araujo tried to fling himself at the ball, he claimed he was pushed by Cristhian Mosquera.
The entire Sporting staff leapt off the bench and rushed to the touchline to petition for a penalty. The French referee ignored their entreaties. The Arsenal supporters breathed another giant sigh of relief.
