THE WAY things are looking, Mikel Arteta might have to get his boots out soon and Arsenal’s medics must be in a rotten mood – but there is no stopping them in the Champions League.
The injuries keep on coming for Arteta with Jurrien Timber the latest player to suffer a fitness issue in a situation which is now beyond a joke.
But in Europe, everything is just perfect and six successive wins is an extraordinary achievement.
Noni Madueke grabbed a couple, the first being an absolute belter, before Gabriel Martinelli scored for a fifth successive Champions League game.
There was also a first appearance in 342 days for Gabriel Jesus when he replaced Viktor Gyokeres, who was also making his first start since November 1 after picking up a hamstring injury.
Marli Salmon, another Arsenal wonderkid at just 16, then made his debut as a late sub for Ben White.
Arsenal ratings
Noni Madueke runs the show but Gyokeres still can’t find the net
CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Arsenal thrash Brugge, Man City beat Madrid, Newcastle held in Leverkusen
So this was a decent win following Saturday’s 2-1 loss at Aston Villa which was proof that maybe the Premier League will not be a one-horse race after all.
But could Arsenal end up winning the Champions League instead? Certainly at the moment, no one will fancy playing them.
Arteta will be impressed with the way his team overcame a difficult spell at the end of the first half to win this game easily.
All three goals were from open play so maybe they are not a set-piece team after all.
Most read in Champions League
Also, they are certain to qualify for the top eight – and will therefore avoid a play-off round – even though they still have to play Inter Milan and Kairat Almaty in the final two group-stage games next month.
Maybe even more incredible is they have conceded just once and that was a strike for Bayern Munich from 17-year-old Lennart Karl.
That 3-1 win over Bayern featured Madueke’s only goal for Arsenal since his move from Chelsea and there have been accusations that he has no end product but he put that to bed here in Bruges.
After that strike, the Belgian champions improved and had a strong spell before half-time but somehow, they held firm.
That included some important blocks from midfielder Christian Norgaard, who was making only his fourth start since joining from Arsenal but was featuring as a central defender.
And this was because Timber, although having travelled to Bruges, was unable to continue as a makeshift centre-back with William Saliba, Christhian Mosquera and Gabriel Magalhaes all sidelined.
Add Declan Rice, Max Dowman, Leandro Trossard and Kai Havertz and Arsenal’s injury problems are once again getting worse.
Even defender Riccardo Calafiori had to start on the bench because he picked up a knock at Villa.
Madueke scores brace
When Madueke fell on to the grass after 10 minutes and the Arsenal physio was called on, you wondered whether the curse had struck again.
But it was merely a hand injury and the England international just needed his fingers strapped before using his left boot to score one of the goals of the season later in the half.
He received a pass from Martin Zubimendi and there seemed little danger before Madueke burst past Joasquin Seys and had too much power for Raphael Onyedika before slamming his shot into the net from 30 yards via the underside of the bar.
Arsenal had a few nervy moments and David Raya made saves from Carlos Forbs. Aleksandar Stankovic and Cristos Tzolis.
Martinelli nets stunner
Yet Brugge, hoping to maintain their bright end to the first half, were left stunned when Madueke headed from close-range 85 seconds into the second period.
And it was also down to a looping cross from Zubimendi who did incredibly well on his weaker left foot.
Martinelli scored in Europe, again, nutmegging Hugo Siquet before hammering an unstoppable shot from outside the area.
And then there was the long-awaited return of Brazilian Jesus who suffered a serious knee injury against Manchester United in the FA Cup in January.
There remain concerns over whether Gyokeres is quite the man Arsenal need up front so Jesus returning is a big boost.
But whatever happens, Arsenal will stick a few past Wolves on Saturday.
Read the full article here
