Arsenal continued their perfect start to the Champions League campaign with a commanding 4-0 victory over Atletico Madrid at the Emirates Stadium, powered by Viktor Gyokeres’ first European goals for the club.
Mikel Arteta’s side were sharp from the outset, dominating possession and threatening through Eberechi Eze, whose deflected shot clipped the crossbar just four minutes in. Declan Rice then sent a volley narrowly over, while at the other end, Julian Alvarez came close to capitalising when David Raya’s rushed clearance left the goal unguarded, only for his curling effort to drift wide.
Gabriel Martinelli thought he had broken the deadlock on 36 minutes, only to see his close-range finish ruled out for offside. Alvarez later rattled the bar for Atletico after the restart, but that proved to be their final warning before Arsenal took full control.
The breakthrough came in the 57th minute when Gabriel Magalhaes met Rice’s precise free-kick with a powerful header past Jan Oblak. That goal ignited a blistering spell for the Gunners, who struck four times in 14 minutes to dismantle Diego Simeone’s typically disciplined side.
Martinelli doubled the lead seven minutes later, calmly slotting in off the far post after an incisive run and throughball from Myles Lewis-Skelly. Then came Gyokeres’ moment—his first Arsenal goal in eight matches—turning sharply in the box before seeing his deflected strike beat Oblak. The Swedish forward struck again just three minutes later, reacting quickest to William Saliba’s headed assist to make it 4-0.
Despite a quiet first half, Arsenal’s second-half dominance was absolute. Gyokeres’ brace marked his first Champions League double since he netted a hat-trick against the Gunners in November 2024, while Martinelli’s goal extended his scoring run in Europe to three consecutive games.
Arteta’s men remain one of only two sides—alongside Inter Milan—to have not conceded in this season’s competition.
