Arsenal Champions League suspension update after Bukayo Saka fear vs PSG as UEFA rules explained

On a night of mostly struggle for Arsenal, who looked like a team playing with four major injuries and a suspension in an already small squad, the good news is that they should be in better shape for next week's second leg. Paris Saint-Germain will go into the game with a 1-0 lead.

They won at the Emirates Stadium in Tuesday's Champions League semi-final matchup thanks to Ousmane Dembele's early goal.

They zipped the ball about the turf like a team that belonged after years imitating one. Arsenal, dealing with the added absence of Thomas Partey due to a one-match ban as well as the continued spate of fitness issues which has punctuated their season, were no match.

It is not that Mikel Arteta saw his side entirely outplayed, not after the opening 20 minutes, but PSG created just as many chances despite not dominating possession.

Whereas Luis Enrique has been able to freely rotate his entire squad, calling upon world class forwards from the bench, Arsenal have been filling holes just to get an XI out onto the pitch. Partey's return in Paris will be a boost to their hopes but missing him for 90 minutes of this tie could prove to be decisive.

In his wake, Arsenal moved Mikel Merino from makeshift striker back into midfield.

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Outside of that they have no new problems to worry about.

Jorginho is unlikely to return from his rib injury in time and Riccardo Calafiori is a perennial doubt. Ben White was in the matchday squad on Tuesday night and came on as a late substitute.

One of the what-if moments of this tie will still have come late in the Santiago Bernabeu a fortnight ago at Real Madrid, though. Losing Partey to such a moment of madness has already proven costly.

He pushed Dani Ceballos in the final minute of play and was booked. It meant that he would miss the semi-final first leg due to an accumulation of yellow cards across the tournament.

Although the count is wiped after the quarter-finals, meaning Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber were also off the hook, suspensions carry over. PSG themselves got through unscathed with Ruiz one yellow away during the Aston Villa tie.

Arsenal then had Bukayo Saka and Trossard booked on the night in north London. Trossard's 10th minute yellow sparked a stop-start half from referee Slavko Vincic.

He averages four cards per game in the Champions League this season and it is easy to see why. He was quick to punish Trossard for stopping a PSG counter attack but then made a rod for his own back with more fouls given.

Kvaratskhelia wanted a yellow card to be issued after two fouls from Timber, but Vincic was not obliging. By the time Saka found himself in the book, things had started to become farcical. Saka was deemed to have fouled Nuno Mendes by the PSG corner flag and the decision frustrated Arsenal's star man.

. Replays showed that it was indeed a soft call and that Saka would have found himself in a dangerous attacking position.

Achraf Hakimi soon joined Trossard and Saka on yellows when he fouled Myles Lewis-Skelly in the middle of the pitch.

He then booked Neves within 60 seconds of the restart. His foul lead to the free-kick for Merino's disallowed goal. No more yellow cards were given out but Vincic kept up his record of four bookings per match.

Fortunately for Arsenal, this will not impact the second leg.

The only way to miss the final is to be sent off in the semi-final second leg. This is not something to worry Arsenal but given some of the confusion over Partey's suspension and the new regulations, it is understandable why some would be concerned after seeing Saka pick up a yellow in N5.