The more they play, the more it seems to be Arsenal’s year. The team coached by Mikel Arteta won 3-1 at San Siro against Inter on Tuesday on Matchday 7 of the Champions League, deploying another incredible performance that underlined once again why they are currently considered the best team around.
With seven wins in seven games so far in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League, Arsenal are leading the standings and will likely end up as winners of the opening phase. After winning seven games in a row for the first time in their European history, scoring 20 goals and conceding just two, the Gunners look like the best team in the competition right now and could potentially win their first Premier League title in more than two decades as well. For that reason, it’s hard to imagine them finishing the season without lifting at least one trophy in the coming months.
The game at San Siro showed, if possible, even more of their potential because of the choices made by Arteta in the starting 11. The Spanish coach decided to bench some of the key players of this team, including English midfielder Declan Rice and Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres, who came off the bench and scored the goal to make it 3-1 in the second half. While Arteta’s selections appeared focused on prioritizing the Premier League, along with the rotations, he is forced to make do with playing every three days, and this game also highlighted the gap between Arsenal and Inter, the 2024–25 Champions League finalists.
It’s quite obvious that both teams are kind of safe, considering their league phase standings. Arsenal are expected to end up as the winners of the league phase, which means they will play at home all the second games in the round of 16. On the other hand, if Inter don’t end up in the top eight and will need to play the playoffs, they should probably take more responsibility for the two 1-0 defeats against Atletico Madrid away and against Liverpool at San Siro in December, more than Tuesday’s defeat against Arsenal. At the same time, there is a persisting issue when Cristian Chivu’s side meet a strong team. The Nerazzurri struggled every match they played against a top team in both Italy and Europe, and this is becoming a major issue for them ahead of the crucial stint of the 2025-26 season.
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Speaking to Sky Italy, Chivu showed his admiration for Arteta and the English side, saying, “Arsenal impressed me more than any other team. They always make the right play and constantly cause you problems with Saka, they always make the right decisions. The Premier League is truly top in terms of intensity and in Italy we’re not used to that. I’m trying to bring that aspect in, but it’s not easy. We’re trying to grow step by step, and we need to be convinced that we’re doing the right things.”
In Serie A, Chivu’s side have struggled against top opposition, failing to beat Napoli (one loss and one draw) and losing to both AC Milan and Juventus. In Europe, after winning their opening four matches against Ajax, Slavia Prague, Kairat, and Union SG, they suffered defeats to Atletico Madrid, Liverpool, and Arsenal. Next week, they will face Borussia Dortmund in what will be a crucial match to avoid the playoffs, something Arsenal won’t need to worry about this season.
