Arsenal opened their Champions League campaign with a 2-0 victory at San Mamés, substitutes Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard making the difference in Bilbao.
For over an hour the game was tense rather than fluent, with Athletic feeding off a raucous crowd and pressing high, yet offering little to trouble David Raya. Arsenal absorbed the pressure, gradually asserting themselves through Martín Zubimendi’s control in midfield, while Noni Madueke carried the fight down the right, even if Eberechi Eze struggled to impose himself.
The breakthrough arrived in the 72nd minute. Martinelli, introduced seconds earlier, raced onto Trossard’s flick near halfway, accelerated clear of the defence and finished low beneath Unai Simón. It was the sort of ruthless incision Arsenal had been waiting for, and it changed the night completely.
Athletic attempted to rally but were kept at arm’s length by Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel, and with four minutes remaining the result was sealed. Martinelli again cut through on the left, this time pulling it back for Trossard, whose shot deflected off Dani Vivian before spinning in off the post.
It was Arsenal’s first competitive European meeting with Athletic and on paper one of their toughest group fixtures.
To leave with three points, a clean sheet and the game decided by substitutes underlined the depth now available to Mikel Arteta when you remember he is without Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka, Ben White and Gabriel Jesus, while William Saliba was fit only for the bench..
Five matches into the season Arsenal have conceded only once, and that to a worldie, while Martinelli and Trossard’s late intervention also created a new milestone: the first Arsenal pair to both score and assist each other’s goals as substitutes in the Champions League.
A tricky opener, handled with maturity, provided the perfect start to the European campaign.
Next up, Manchester City.