Here is a look at the Athletic Bilbao vs Arsenal newspaper player ratings from the big European media outlets following their MD1 Champions League clash on 16 September, 2025. Arsenal won 2-0 at San Mames thanks to goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.
L’Equipe player ratings Athletic Bilbao vs Arsenal 2025 UCL
L’Equipe have notoriously tough ratings and that’s reflected here, with both Arsenal and Athletic Club having an average team rating of below 5.
No Arsenal starting player gets more than a 6/10 in L’Equipe’s books, with Eze and Gyokeres both considered to be the worst AFC players on the evening (3/10 rating) by the French paper. Noni Madueke, a summer signing from Chelsea, got a 4/10 rating here from L’Equipe.
Marca player ratings Bilbao 0-2 Arsenal CL 2025/26
Marca seemed to concur with L’Equipe that no player really raised their game to the level of an European night, with 2 stars and 1 stars in their rating and no player on either side getting 3 stars.
The Spanish sports newspaper were also upset with the performance of Lithuanian refere Rumsas, giving him just 1 star.
Diario AS player rating
AS were more liberal than Marca and L’Equipe in their player ratings- they gave Declan Rice, Zubimendi and Madueke three stars, as well as substitute Martinelli.