Arteta praises ´outstanding´ subs after Arsenal’s Champions League win over Bilbao

Mikel Arteta hailed super-sub pair Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard after the duo combined to seal a 2-0 win for Arsenal at Athletic Bilbao.

Martinelli scored just 36 seconds after coming on – Arsenal’s fastest ever substitute goal in the Champions League – before fellow alteration Trossard put the Gunners out of sight in the 87th minute at San Mames.

Trossard and Martinelli assisted each other for their goals, marking the first time Arsenal substitutes have combined for multiple goals in a single Champions League game.

Arsenal have now won five straight group stage matches in Europe’s premier competition for the first time since a run of six between December 2004 and November 2005—the last five of which were part of the only season they reached the final.

Starting our Champions League campaign with a win

Thank you for all your support tonight, Gooners pic.twitter.com/X5xFx6p6aJ

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 16, 2025

“Something that we always discuss is that the finishers have to impact the game, and Gabi and Leo came on to make the difference for the team,” said Arteta.

“They were outstanding and the rest of the team as well. In many moments, they were at a very good level.

“It means that [Gabi and Leo] are connected and they feel that they are really, really important. We have discussed that a lot. We’re going to need that.

“Piero [Hincapie] comes in and plays five minutes and so does Christian [Norgaard] and it’s the best five minutes of their lives. That’s the spirit that we need amongst the squad. If we have everybody at that level, we’ll win a lot of games.”

Bilbao made their first Champions League appearance since the 2014-15 season, and head coach Ernesto Valverde feels his team gave a strong account of themselves.

“It’s a matter of details, when the game is so even,” said Valverde, whose side matched Arsenal for shots, with 11.

“This is the Champions League and nobody is going to forgive you, we are in high competition and we have to accept things as they are.”

Arsenal are back in action in the competition when they host Olympiacos on October 1, while Bilbao make the trip to Borussia Dortmund.