Arsenal were welcomed by flames and fireworks, but the game had barely got going before referee Michael Salisbury stopped play after spotting a drone flying above Highbury Stadium.

The match re-started eight minutes later - after the players had briefly been instructed to leave the pitch - and Arsenal were soon caught off guard when Aaron Loupalo-Bi rolled Marli Salmon and slotted past Illan Meslier.

Despite having countless chances and dominating possession, Mikel Arteta's side trailed at the break - much to the delight of the raucous home crowd.

But the Fleetwood's elation did not last long as Viktor Gyokeres scrambled in the six-yard box to poke home an equaliser four minutes into the second half.

Introduced at half-time, captain Martin Odegaard had injected a sense of urgency into the team, but they still lacked a clinical edge - with only one goal to show for 26 shots and 59 touches inside the Fleetwood box.

Their evening in the north west went from bad to worse when 16-year-old Max Dowman saw red, kicking out at Neal before facing the wrath of Arteta as he headed down the tunnel.

Meslier, making his debut for the Gunners, failed to get close to any of the Cod Army's penalty kicks, while it was a lacklustre strike from Guimaraes that sealed the Gunners' fate.