UEFA Champions League

December 10, 2025 Jan Breydelstadion, Brugge Club Brugge entered the night under the shadow of change. Ivan Leko, appointed only on Monday after a barren run of one win in seven, inherited a squad unsettled but not undone: at home in Europe, they had yielded just a single defeat in their previous seven. Their method was simple, almost doctrinal—absorb pressure, wait for the opponent’s imbalance, and strike. Arsenal, by contrast, opened with the authority of a side determined

November 26, 2025 Emirates Stadium, London Tonight, the last two unbeaten sides in the Champions League meet at the summit of Europe. Across the technical areas stand Vincent Kompany and Mikel Arteta—disciples of Pep Guardiola, forged in the same creed of positional discipline and imaginative risk. Kompany arrives in his second season at Bayern, having restored the Bavarians’ domestic primacy after Leverkusen’s fleeting rebellion, losing only twice en route to a 13-point titl

November 4, 2025 Fortuna Arena, Prague The night was cold in the Czech capital, the air brittle with expectation. Red, white and blue lights flickered over the Fortuna Arena, where Slavia Prague, unbeaten at home, prepared to test Arsenal. Arsenal arrived without Gyökeres — a muscular injury sustained at Burnley shelving him after what had been his most convincing half in Arsenal colours. Seven players absent now for injuries. Zubimendi suspended through accumulation, Rice on

October 21, 2025 Emirates Stadium, London Atlético Madrid arrived in London bearing both scars and pride. Simeone’s men had opened the Spanish season with their familiar cocktail of defiance and discipline — a 3–2 win over Rayo Vallecano courtesy of a Julián Álvarez hat-trick, followed by a 5–2 demolition of Real Madrid, their first time scoring five against their city rivals in seventy-five years.  In Europe, they had fought as they always do — from behind, in pain. A 3–2 de

October 1, 2025 Emirates Stadium, London Olympiacos are centenarians of Greek football, founded a century ago in Piraeus. Giants at home, crowned in 2024 with Greece’s first European trophy — the Europa Conference League.  At 14, in Bilbao’s academy, Arteta trained under José Luis Mendilibar. Thirty years later, his Olympiacos side stood in Arsenal’s way. Olympiacos also carried ghosts: his first European tie as Arsenal manager in 2020, victory in Athens followed by heartbrea

September 16, 2025 San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao Opening nights in Europe do not crown champions, but they reveal temperament. Arsenal, back in the Champions League after seasons of absence and heartbreak, found their proving ground in Bilbao. This was Arsenal’s first ever competitive clash with a Basque side. Gabriel laid flowers at Pichichi’s bust; Arteta returned home to the region of his boyhood. Their fans showed unity too—waving Palestinian flags in defiance, something othe