While Ethan Nwaneri's Marseille loan move got off to an ideal start at the weekend, the Arsenal youngster was handed a huge blow in the Champions League following some dramatic scenes
06:50, 29 Jan 2026
Ethan Nwaneri #11 of Olympique de Marseille celebrates his first goal during the Ligue 1 McDonald's match between Olympique de Marseille and RC Lens
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Ethan Nwaneri won't be playing Champions League football again this season(Image: (Photo by Xavier Laine/Getty Images))
Arsenal youngster Ethan Nwaneri saw his hopes of competing in the Champions League again this season dashed before his very eyes in dramatic circumstances on Wednesday night. The forward completed a loan switch to French outfit Olympique Marseille last week, in search of more game time.
The Hale End academy star made an instant impact, scoring on debut for his new club to help them on their way towards victory over RC Lens.
Nwaneri then had to take a step back to watch Marseille in Champions League action against Club Brugge in midweek, with registration rules preventing him from featuring in the final league phase match of this year's competition.
It didn't go to plan early on for Les Olympiens, as a quickfire double from Mamadou Diakhon and Romeo Vermant put the Belgian side in total control.
A third goal was added in the 79th minute by Aleksandar Stankovic, but it appeared to be a result that would see Marseille scrape into the top 24 of the Champions League on goal difference.
That was until late drama in Portugal as Benfica, who were 3-2 up against nine-man Real Madrid, had one final say in proceedings. Goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin rushed up the field for a free-kick deep into stoppage time, which he managed to get on the end of and direct goalwards.
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The shot-stopper remarkably found the back of the net with the final kick of the game, sending Jose Mourinho's team through and knocking Marseille out of the competition.
It was the dramatic culmination of the new league phase format after eight games, bringing delight in Portugal and despair in France.
Anatoliy Trubin of Benfica celebrates scoring his team's fourth goal with a header with teammates during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid C.F.
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Benfica knocked Marseille out of the Champions League with the last kick of the game(Image: (Photo by Jose Manuel Alvarez Rey/Getty Images))
The last-gasp exit for Marseille has ultimately cost them £825,000 in prize money, which they would've landed for reaching the knockout phase of the competition.
On top of that is a blow for Nwaneri, who would've been keen to feature in Europe again this season. On top of an increase in minutes overall for the campaign, one of the draws of moving to Marseille would have been that opportunity in the Champions League.
Former England midfielder Steven Gerrard certainly thought it was a key part of the move when speaking to TNT Sports last week.
He said: "I love it, I love it. I think, if this works that everyone can be a winner from it. I think Mikel Arteta has been extremely clever here because he’s sending him to De Zerbi as well, who has got a track record for improving players, and he will give him the time and education and development and he’ll get more game time playing for Marseille.
"If he gets, samples the league, samples the experiences like tonight it’s not going to do him any harm. He’s a top talent, and now he’s got to go and get experience and this will be great for him for the future.
“I think from a selfish point of view, he (Arteta) probably wanted to keep him around the squad. If you’re going for the Premier League and the Champions League and the quadruple, if you like, you want as many options as you can get from a selfish point of view.
"But there’s got to be a part of you where you think about the player and where he’s going to be in the next three or four years, and if he’s going to be a top player for Arsenal, the best thing for him is to play games.
"Give him different experiences, go and test him in France. Test him around Europe and hopefully in six months or if he extends it then he comes back with more games under his belt and more experience and he’s a better player. But without a doubt, De Zerbi will make him a better player.”
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It now means focus for Nwaneri shifts to domestic action in France with Marseille, which may be something of a disappointment, considering how close they were to the play-off round of the Champions League. As for his parent club, Arsenal, they ended the league phase with a perfect record of eight wins out of eight.
It means the Gunners top the overall table, booking themselves in for the round of 16 as one of the top seeds for that round. It remains to be seen who they could draw, and how the route to the final plays out before them, but it's an opportunity to create history once more.