Champions League Briefing – A stunning goal-line clearance and are strikerless Arsenal better suited to the UCL?

New York Times

04-03-2025

Jurrien Timber scored Arsenal's first goal in three games in the 18th minute of their Champions League last 16 first-leg game away to PSV.
Then Arsenal scored another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another. That's seven if you lost count — the first time they have hit that number under Mikel Arteta.
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It's a welcome break from the Premier League for the north Londoners after their recent slip-ups, and Liverpool's incessant brilliance, have seemingly taken the league title out of their reach.
Elsewhere, Tyrone Mings helped out Aston Villa with one of the most remarkable clearances ever, Rodrygo continued to prove Jude Bellingham's 'most gifted' shout correct, and Kylian Mbappe's little brother got his first full taste of Champions League football.
Here, The Athletic's Elias Burke analyses all the key moments from Tuesday's Champions League action.
Tuesday's last 16, first leg results
Club Brugge 1-3 Aston Villa
Borussia Dortmund 1-1 Lille
PSV 1-7 Arsenal
Real Madrid 2-1 Atletico Madrid
On the list of players who'd produce something extraordinary for Villa's trip to Club Brugge on Tuesday, Mings' name might not have been far down the list given what happened on their last trip.
On their last visit to the Jan Breydel Stadium in this season's league phase, they lost 1-0 after Mings inexplicably picked up the ball inside the Villa box and Hans Vanaken dispatched the resulting penalty. After that game, Emery described it as 'completely strange' and the 'biggest mistake we've made in my career as a coach'.
Mings was again doing extraordinary things in his own box on Tuesday but this time he stepped up with arguably the most remarkable goal-line clearance in Champions League history.
With the score level at 1-1 in the second half, Brugge winger Christos Tzolis whipped a cross from the left wing over the heads of the Villa defenders and towards midfielder Hans Vanaken, who was waiting to head the ball in at the far post.
Vanaken did everything right from a forward's perspective: he headed the ball downwards to avoid it flying over the bar and into the direction from which it came, leaving goalkeeper Emi Martinez stranded between the sticks.
Just when it appeared Vanaken's header was set to nestle into the bottom corner, putting the home side ahead on the night, Mings flicked his left boot up and somehow managed to divert it off target.
The clearance was so spectacular that the referee blew for a goal kick despite Vanaken's protests, suggesting he believed it too improbable that such a clearance was possible.
Such a feat of athleticism is even more impressive, given Mings has had pretty horrid luck with injuries. The 31-year-old has sustained two ACL injuries in his professional career, most recently sidelining him for 445 days. He returned last October and has since re-established himself as a key player in Unai Emery's defence. If this clearance is anything to go by, I'd say he's fully recovered.
BEST GOAL-LINE CLEARANCE EVER??? 😱
Tyrone Mings stops Hans Vanaken from giving Brugge the lead in SPECTACULAR style 🤯
📺 Watch the Champions League LIVE on @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/Z82R6XPIMo
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) March 4, 2025
Villa went on to win the game 3-1, thanks to an own goal and a late Marco Asensio penalty.
With that first game in mind, Mings is probably about even.
After failing to win each of their past two league games, falling further behind Liverpool in the Premier League title race, Arsenal did their aspirations of going deep in the Champions League this season no harm, demolishing PSV 7-1. No bad for a team robbed of their best attackers by injury.
It was the first time Arsenal had scored seven goals under Mikel Arteta, which, incidentally, makes them the first team in Champions League history to score seven or more goals away from home in a knockout stage match. On the other hand, it equalled PSV's heaviest defeat in their 112-year history. No wins in their past four games domestically suggests it's not a vintage side, but Arsenal are hardly at their highest ebb either.
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The gap at the top of England's top flight has now extended to 13 points, and it would take a very unlikely turn of events for Arteta's side to claim their first league title since 2004. But, judging by the quality of their performance in the Netherlands, their strikerless system may be better suited to success in Europe anyway.
If you had flicked on the Arsenal game just before Timber opened the scoring, you'd be forgiven for thinking they were setting up to defend a counter-attack rather than score from one. Declan Rice, Mikel Merino, and Timber are not best-known for their goalscoring qualities (though Merino's poaching ability is underrated), but it was Rice's cross, hung up to the far post, that Timber headed in.
Seventeen-year-old prodigy Ethan Nwaneri got in on the act next, firing into the roof of the net before Merino extended the lead before halftime. Martin Odegaard, whose lack of output on the offensive end has been highlighted in recent weeks, extended the lead in the second half. Between that goal, his second and the team's sixth, Leandro Trossard dinked over the keeper from close range. Anne Hathaway, who once declared her love for the Belgian, I hope you were watching. Riccardo Calafiori closed out the scoring in the 87th minute.
Over an extended period of matches, Arsenal's lack of firepower in attack will hold them back in the Premier League — with their goalless outings against West Ham and Nottingham Forest evidence of that. However, due to the Champions League's two-legged format in the knockout stage, Arsenal may fancy their chances of progressing by staying defensively compact and taking their chances when they arrive.
Sure, having a striker would help them do that, but as Champions League winners Thomas Tuchel, Rafa Benitez and Jose Mourinho will attest to, defence can win championships.
With superstar team-mates Mbappe and Vini Jr leading the line for Real Madrid, Bellingham describing Rodrygo as 'the most gifted player in the squad' certainly raised eyebrows.
'For me he's probably the most talented and most gifted player in the squad,' Bellingham said on CBS Sports Golazo after Madrid beat Manchester City 3-1 at the Bernabeu in February. 'The things he can do with the football — we'll be messing around and he'll flick the ball up somehow and you're like, 'How do you do that?'. I'm trying to do it, twisting up my ankles and everything like that. He's a pleasure to play with.'
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Naturally, it prompted the question: is he serious, or just boosting his ego? Rodrygo is a decorated Brazil international in his own right and one of the best players in the world in his position, but alongside Mbappe and Vini, his star is somewhat dimmed by his galactico team-mates.
Still, as he often does when Mbappe and Vini are quiet, Rodrygo stepped up inside four minutes to put his side ahead in the Madrid derby. The 24-year-old opened the day's showpiece match in style, blitzing past Atletico defender Javi Galan before taking a touch inside the box, dribbling past another defender and then whipping a left-footed shot into the top left corner.
What a start 😳
Atlético Madrid can't stop Rodrygo as he drives inside to open the scoring ⚽
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/r2qKdWDFaz
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) March 4, 2025
Rodrygo STUNS Atlético Madrid with a beautifully timed run and finish in under 5 minutes 🤯 pic.twitter.com/GhTwta38GZ
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 4, 2025
He's now on 25 Champions League goals, just three fewer than Vini — not bad for a player who many thought would be a substitute at the beginning of the season. Madrid won the derby 2-1, with Brahim Diaz scoring the winner after fellow former City man Julian Alvarez equalised in the first half.
While Kylian was leading the line for Madrid, his little brother Ethan was earning the first Champions League start of his young career.
Ethan, 18, started on the right wing for Lille as they travelled to Borussia Dortmund, last year's losing finalists. He doesn't have his brother's blistering pace, but Ethan is similarly skilful with a composure in possession honed playing deeper in midfield.
His stat line was solid, completing 24 passes and two dribbles, winning five ground duels, and creating a chance. He was substituted in the 71st minute at 1-1, the final score.
With such an assured performance, you wonder how long it will be until they're on the same pitch on the biggest stage.
Wednesday's fixtures
(8pm BST, 3pm ET unless stated)
Feyenoord v Inter (5.45pm BST, 12.45pm ET)
Bayern Munich v Leverkusen
Benfica v Barcelona
PSG v Liverpool
Second-legs will be played on March 11/12.
(Top image: Getty Images)