BBC Radio 5 Live match report

Arsene Wenger's Double-winners were without their three biggest icons in Tony Adams, Dennis Bergkamp and Marc Overmars.

They then lost striker Nicolas Anelka just before the start and skipper Steve Bould with a gaping head-wound and a hamstring injury a minute before half time.

David Seaman just tips the Kiev penalty into the net

By then they were trailing to Sergii Rebrov's 26th-minute penalty despite luckless David Seaman's wonderful effort to push the spot-kick against a post and Olexander Holovko and Andrii Shevchenko added further goals with superb strikes in the second half.

Substitute Steve Hughes headed a consolation six minutes from time and Chris Wreh had another strike wiped out for offside two minutes later.

The stress of injuries got to the Arsenal boss

But it was only a late show of defiance and the result means that Arsenal must now beat French champions Lens at Wembley in three weeks to retain any hopes of going through to the quarter finals.

Lens' defeat in Athens by Panathinaikos put the Greeks top of the group despite two previous defeats and they will provide the Gunners' final test in the League phase in December.

Without their top three players they were too lightweight in attack and under continual stress at the back, despite an opening 20 minutes in which they had Kiev chasing shadows with patient possession play.

After Wreh had missed two plausible chances from crosses by Nelson Vivas and Lee Dixon, however, Arsenal were suddenly on the back-foot when Martin Keown brought down Rebrov as the striker burst clear and cut in from the left.

Ray Parlour battles past Yurii Dmytrulin

Rebrov, who hit the controversial last-gasp equaliser which robbed Wenger's team of two precious points at Wembley two weeks ago, stepped up to take the kick and although England keeper Seaman plunged across his goal to push it onto a post, the ball dropped agonisingly over the line.

Bookings for Nigel Winterburn and Patrick Vieira then reflected the pressure Arsenal came under and there was another major blow when Bould, who had needed running repairs to a cut head from the 11th minute, had to be substituted just before half time.

It was just another major setback after Gunners had to go in without the currently prolific Anelka before the kick-off with an infected foot.

Their bravery could not be questioned, though, and boss Arsene Wenger boldly pushed Vieira into attack at the start of the second half and he just failed to convert two openings created by the work-horse Emmanuel Petit.

Christopher Wreh after the match

The first was from just inside the six-yard box with the goal seemingly at his mercy but Vieira could only stab a shot straight at keeper Olexander Shovkovskiy.

Arsenal paid a heavy price when just after the hour, following another injudicious foul by Keown - who was booked - Kiev skipper Oleh Luzhnyi sent over a free kick which defender Holovko headed firmly home.

A reeling Kiev free-kick puts the game out of Arsenal's reach

Another bad tackle, this time by Nelson Vivas, pulled down Andrii Shevchenko in the 72nd minute and the brilliant centre forward curled a delightful 25-yard freekick inside Seaman's near post.

Kiev looked like running riot in front of their 80,000 fans at that stage but they failed to convert other chances with Arsenal's defence at full stretch.