Finishers’ Creed

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 other clubs have censored.

San Mamés roared. Eleven years of waiting for Champions League football had turned the cathedral into a furnace. Athletic’s plan was clear: frustrate, strike on the break, exploit the space behind Arsenal’s fullbacks. Athletic fought fiercely, though deprived of Nico Williams. Arsenal began cautious, lines compact, Rice and Merino holding the midfield with statesmanlike restraint. Gyökeres clashed with Gabriel, Timber was forced off, Dani Vivian broke through down the flank. Still, Arsenal endured.

Gabriel kept Navarro at bay. Madueke’s flashes of invention forced Unai Simón into work; Calafiori’s forays and Mosquera’s resolve hinted at balance. Eze, though struggling on his European debut, set a tone with a fierce tackle before half-time: no ball lost.

The change came with Arteta’s finishers. On the hour: Trossard for Gyökeres, Martinelli for Eze. Thirty-six seconds later, Trossard pinned in midfield, flicked into Martinelli’s path. With one deft touch and a surge of strength, he brushed past his marker and struck clean. The away end erupted. At last, Arsenal looked at home in Europe.

Athletic pressed recklessly in response. On 85 minutes, Martinelli cut back for Trossard, whose shot clipped the post and spun in. What Martinelli broke, Trossard extinguished. Two substitutes, two goals, each assisting the other. The creed of champions: finishers decide nights.

For all the summer excitement around new arrivals, the night reminded supporters that Arsenal’s strength lies as much on the bench as in the starting XI. Nordgård and Hincapié marked their Champions League debuts, but it was veterans of European heartache who delivered clarity: every second matters, every role counts.

Not glamour, but authority. Not dominance, but resilience. The memory of last season’s semifinal defeat lingers, yet the first step of this campaign carries promise. 

Athletic Club 0 – 2 Arsenal

(G. Martinelli ‘70, L. Trossard ‘85)