Arsenal could set a new Champions League winning record when they take on Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday night in their opening league-phase match of the campaign.
Mikel Arteta has overseen sustained progression in Europe since ending the Gunners' seven-year exile from the Champions League, masterminding runs to the quarter-finals in 2023-24 and the semis last term.
Eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain broke Gunners hearts in the 2024-25 season, but Arteta's side are one of three teams who have been tipped to go all the way in this year's edition.
Arsenal head to the San Mames Stadium with the wind in their sails following a 3-0 Premier League victory over Nottingham Forestat the weekend, as a Martin Zubimendi brace and Viktor Gyokeres strike left them second in the rankings behind perfect Liverpool.
The Gunners have also made a habit of taking down La Liga teams in recent Champions League campaigns, winning each of their last five games in a row versus sides from the Spanish top flight.
Arsenal aiming to set new winning record in Athletic Bilbao clash
Arsenal's Martin Zubimendi celebrates scoring on September 13, 2025
Should Arsenal also come up trumps on Tuesday evening, they will become the first team to ever defeat Spanish clubs six times in a row in European Cup/Champions League clashes.
The Gunners' recent affinity for success against Spanish sides started in the 2023-24 group stage, as Arteta's men edged out Sevilla 2-1 away from home before also easing to a 2-0 victory over Los Palanganas at the Emirates a couple of weeks later.
Arsenal also sank Girona 2-1 in the 2024-25 league phase, as Jorginho and Ethan Nwaneri cancelled out an Arnaut Danjuma opener, before their momentous pair of successes against Real Madrid in last year's quarter-finals.
A Declan Rice-inspired 3-0 home win preceded a 2-1 Bernabeu triumph as Arsenal defeated the reigning champions 5-1 on aggregate, and they are now potentially just 90 minutes away from achieving an unprecedented European feat.
The Gunners have already slain Athletic Bilbao once this year,recording a 3-0 win in the Emirates Cupduring pre-season, but they have never met the Basque side in a competitive setting before.
Arsenal team news latest before Athletic Champions League clash
Arsenal's Martin Odegaard pictured on August 23, 2025
The one blot on the Arsenal notebook against Forest was Martin Odegaard suffering his second shoulder injury of the season, just a couple of weeks on from damaging the same joint in the 5-0 win over Leeds United.
Odegaard was not pictured in training with the rest of the squad on Monday, nor was he seen boarding the plane to Spain, so it would be a shock to see the captain involved in the league phase opener.
However, William Saliba did take part in the session at London Colney and is on course to be available, although Arteta could still err on the side of caution with the Frenchman given the impending battle with Manchester City.
Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus - who was omitted from Arsenal's league phase squad - will play no part in Tuesday's game, but there could be a competitive Arsenal debut for Christian Norgaard, who is also back in full training after a knock.
> Click here to see how Arsenal could line up against Athletic on Tuesday night
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