Madueke stars with double at Brugge as Arsenal maintain perfect Champions League record

Arsenal strengthened their Champions League campaign on Tuesday night as Noni Madueke’s brace powered a 3-0 win over Club Brugge, extending their 100% record and effectively sealing their place in the knockout stages.

Madueke sets the tone early

Mikel Arteta rotated heavily after the weekend loss to Aston Villa, and one of the incoming players delivered immediately.

Madueke opened the scoring with a brilliant solo effort, shrugging off a defender before firing a 20-yard strike off the crossbar.

Club Brugge applied pressure late in the first half, but David Raya’s sharp saves from Christos Tzolis and Aleksandar Stankovic preserved Arsenal’s lead.

Quickfire second-half push

Madueke doubled the advantage two minutes into the second half, heading in a precise cross from Martin Zubimendi.

Moments later, Gabriel Martinelli curled home Arsenal’s third to put the game beyond reach and secure a comfortable finish.

Key returns and milestones

Gabriel Jesus made his first appearance in 342 days after recovering from an ACL injury, while 16-year-old Marli Salmon earned his senior debut.

Jesus nearly capped his return with a goal, but his late effort rattled the crossbar.

The victory lifts Arsenal to 18 points, surpassing last season’s threshold for a top-eight finish, and positioning them to bypass the February play-offs and advance straight to the last 16.

Rotation pays off for Arteta

Supporters have urged Arteta to rotate amid a heavy injury list, and he deployed his seventh different centre-back pairing of the season with Christian Nørgaard and Piero Hincapié.

Though the performance dipped at intervals, Arsenal’s control strengthened in the second half, enabling Arteta to manage minutes efficiently.

Gabriel Jesus impressed during his half-hour caméo, offering more attacking presence than Viktor Gyökeres, who endured a challenging evening.