On December 11, Arsenal finished their sixth match without a loss, beating Club Brugge 3‑0 to lock up the top position in the league‑phase standings. Their opponents, Manchester City, also won out, edging Real Madrid 2‑1 on the Spanish capital’s soil.
Arsenal’s triumph was powered by Noni Madueke and Gabriel Martinelli, who both scored. With a squad that had changed seven times since the Bayern win, Madueke opened the scoring after a brilliant build‑up in Brugge’s half, delivering a long‑range shot into the top‑right corner at the 25‑minute mark. The hosts later almost capitalised twice before the half‑time whistle, but Arsenal shot back in the second half. A headed effort by Madueke from a Martin Zubimendi cross gave the Gunners the lead, and nine minutes later Martinelli curled a beautiful strike after cutting in from the right. The return of Gabriel Jesus, who had been sidelined since January, added extra flair for the visitors, as reported by UEFA.
Meanwhile, Manchester City’s comeback hinged on Nico O’Reilly’s instinctive finish and a composed penalty from Erling Haaland. Real Madrid struck first after Vinicius Junior missed a short chance early on, before Rodrygo added a neat finish for a second goal before the hour. Guardiola’s side surrendered the lead after just over seven minutes when a header by Joško Gvardiol was saved by Thibaut Courtois. O’Reilly then pounced on a rebound to level the score. As the game approached full‑time, Haaland seized his 50th Champions League start with a calm spot‑kick after being fouled by Antonio Rüdiger. Late in the match, substitute Endrick almost managed an equaliser, but his header bounced off the crossbar.
In other fixtures, Leverkusen secured a late draw at the expense of Newcastle. Alejandro Grimaldo scored the equaliser in the dying minutes to deny the hosts a win. Grimaldo’s shot had initially given Leverkusen the edge when Robert Andrich’s header redirected a Bruno Guimarães goal. Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon had seemed poised to restore the advantage, but Grimaldo calmly fired past Aaron Ramsdale with two minutes left on the clock. After a penalty awarded to Leverkusen for a foul by Nick Woltemade, Gordon converted the spot‑kick to bring the score level and then set up a chance for teenager Lewis Miley, who headed for the top corner, only to be met again by Grimaldo’s lethal finish.
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