Arsenal marked their first home night of the Champions League season with a 3-0 victory at the Emirates Stadium, breaking open a tight contest after the interval to give their European campaign an emphatic lift.
Mikel Arteta selected Mikel Merino from the start, looking for the midfielder’s threat around the penalty area in a match that remained stubbornly balanced for more than an hour.
The breakthrough finally came in the 64th minute, when Jurrien Timber scored to end the resistance. Arsenal immediately found another gear, with Eberechi Eze adding a second only three minutes later as the Emirates crowd watched the match turn decisively in the home side’s favour.
Bukayo Saka then completed the scoring with Arsenal’s third goal, sealing a result that transformed a difficult European evening into a commanding home win.
Second-half surge settles Arsenal’s European opener
For 64 minutes, Arsenal had been forced to work through a combative and congested match. Once Timber struck, however, the momentum shifted sharply. Eze’s quick follow-up left the visitors with little time to recover, while Saka’s late contribution put the final margin beyond doubt.
The 3-0 scoreline gives Arsenal a strong start at the Emirates in this season’s Champions League, with Arteta’s side showing patience before delivering a decisive burst when the contest opened up.
