Arsenal Beat Lille 3-0 With Three Goals in Seven Minutes

Arsenal strengthened their unbeaten start to the Champions League league phase with a 3-0 victory over Lille at Emirates Stadium on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. Jurrien Timber, Eberechi Eze and substitute Bukayo Saka scored within seven second-half minutes, helping Mikel Arteta's team secure a second consecutive European win.

According to Sky Sports and TSN, Arsenal dominated the closing stages after struggling to break through for more than an hour. Timber opened the scoring in the 64th minute, Eze added a second three minutes later, and Saka completed the result in the 71st minute.

The victory was Arsenal's second in two Champions League matches this season and their ninth win in 10 games across all competitions, according to TSN. The result also extended their winning streak in the competition's group or league phase to 14 matches, with their previous defeat in that phase coming against Inter Milan in November 2024.

Arteta made five changes to the team that defeated Leeds 2-1 as Arsenal began a demanding run of eight matches in 25 days. His substitutions proved decisive, with Saka, Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz introduced after the opening goal to help increase the hosts' attacking intensity.

Timber broke the deadlock by controlling Noni Madueke's low cross before lifting his finish over Lille goalkeeper Berke Ozer. The defender's goal was his first of the season, according to Sky Sports.

Eze then made it 2-0 in the 67th minute, finishing from Saka's pass after the ball took a slight deflection. Saka, who had supplied the assist, scored Arsenal's third four minutes later by converting Havertz's cut-back following a combination involving Odegaard.

Both Timber and Eze registered their first goals of the season. Saka's impact off the bench further demonstrated Arsenal's attacking options as the club pursues its first Champions League title after finishing as runner-up last season.

Arsenal had opportunities to score before halftime. Bruno Guimaraes sent a close-range opportunity wide from a Timber cut-back, while Mikel Merino headed another Timber cross straight at Ozer. Eze also missed a promising chance after receiving a cut-back from Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Lille briefly thought it had scored through Ayase Ueda in the 23rd minute, but the effort was ruled out for offside. According to Sky Sports, the visitors failed to register a shot on target throughout the match.

Lille manager Davide Ancelotti pointed to Arsenal's depth and their ability to change the pace of the game as key factors in the defeat.

"It's really tough. With the players they always have on the bench, they can change the rhythm of the game."

Ancelotti said Lille struggled to maintain Arsenal's intensity after the hour mark, although he believed his players had competed well for much of the match.

"For us it was difficult to keep up with the rhythm they put after 60 minutes."

The Lille manager also urged his team to retain the positive elements of their performance before Arsenal's late scoring burst.

"We have to keep the good things we did for 55 or 60 minutes."

Ancelotti acknowledged that earning a positive result away to Arsenal required several factors to fall into place, which he said did not happen for Lille.

"To come here and get a good result, you have to have many things aligned and we didn't have that."

Despite the three-goal margin, Ancelotti felt the final score was harsh on his players.

"It's too hard on the players, the score. They didn't deserve this score."

Former Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud also returned to Emirates Stadium as a substitute for Lille and received a warm reception from the home supporters, according to Sky Sports.