Subs Martinelli and Trossard earn Arsenal 2-0 win at Bilbao
BILBAO, Spain: Arsenal began their Champions League campaign with a 2-0 win away to Athletic Bilbao on Tuesday, with Gabriel Martinelli making an immediate impact from the bench to open the scoring and another substitute, Leandro Trossard, netting the second. Mikel Arteta’s side, beaten at the semifinal stage last season by eventual winners Paris St. Germain, were the better team on the night, but labored to put away Athletic who were backed by a boisterous San Mames stadium, until the substitutes arrived. Martinelli replaced Eberechi Eze in the 71st minute, with Arsenal struggling to find a breakthrough despite creating plenty of chances, and the substitute netted an impressive solo goal after less than a minute on the pitch. The Brazilian forward was sent racing through on goal after a flicked pass from Trossard, and the two combined again three minutes from time, with Martinelli’s pullback from the byline finished off by Trossard. The game took a while to get going before Arsenal ventured forward and began to create chances.