PSV were left ruing missed chances as they were ultimately outclassed by a rampant Arsenal team in the Philips Stadium.

The Eredivisie champions were three goals behind after half an hour as the London side punished them for some slack defending, after PSV had come within inches of taking the lead.

Arsenal should have been reduced to 10 men when the game was at 2-0 when the referee declined to give Myles Lewis-Skelly a second yellow card for a late tackle on Richard Ledezma on the edge of the penalty area.

The English side had the ball in the net in the 12th minute, but Declan Rice received the ball in an offside position, while at the other end Ismael Saibari smashed a shot against the crossbar with the goal gaping.

That missed chance proved costly as Arsenal scored twice in three minutes. Former Ajax defender Jurrien Timber headed in Rice’s dinked cross for the first, before Ethan Nwaneri curled a sublime shot into the top corner after Myles-Skelly created the opening on the left-hand side.

Three minutes after Myles-Skelly’ was spared a red card, Arsenal grabbed a third when PSV failed to clear their lines and the ball fell at the feet of Mikel Merino, who shot through Oliver Boscagli’s legs.

Brief hope

PSV were given a lifeline when Thomas Partey was penalised for manhandling Luuk de Jong at a corner and Noa Lang gave David Raya no chance with the spot-kick.

But immediately after half-time Arsenal put the tie to bed as PSV were again unable to cope with their movement around the penalty area.

Nwaneri made space on the right-hand side with a stepover before playing a cross that Walter Benitez could only palm into the path of Martin Ødegaard, who tucked the goal away.

Two minutes later Riccardo Calafiori combined with Leandro Trossard before playing the ball in for the Belgian to dink past the advancing Benitez.

Ødegaard claimed his second in the 73rd minute when he was allowed to run unchallenged to the edge of the penalty area before firing a shot that the goalkeeper could only flap at on its way in.

And the former Heerenveen midfielder rounded off his masterclass five minutes from time with a delightful side-footed pass that released Calafiori to brush the ball past Benitez for Arsenal’s seventh goal.

The second leg in London next Wednesday, March 12 is effectively a dead rubber.