Inaki Williams believes Arsenal should be considered as one of the favourites to win the Champions League after Athletic Bilbao’s 2-0 defeat on Tuesday evening.
Mikel Arteta’s side struggled to create clear-cut chances in their Champions League opener at San Mames but the introduction of Gabriel Martinelli immediately changed the game as the Brazilian winger opened the scoring in the 72nd minute as he raced onto a pass from Leandro Trossard from inside his own half to finish beyond Unai Simon.
Martinelli and Trossard then combined again for Arsenal’s second goal in the 87th minute as the Belgian’s deflected effort from close range beat the Bilbao goalkeeper.
Arsenal were beaten by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-final last season, and Williams insists the Gunners are one of the competition’s frontrunners once again this term.
‘The result doesn’t reflect what the match was like because we played a good game. In the end, it’s Arsenal, one of the favourites in this competition,’ Williams told Movistar after the game.
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‘We fought, we gave it our all, and today it wasn’t to be.
‘There are seven more games left, and what’s clear is that Athletic didn’t come here to enjoy this competition, but to compete in it. I think we made a hard effort today, and it didn’t help much.
‘They have a lot of quality. We knew this before the start, that world-class players can kill the game in two isolated plays.
‘We were far superior in the first half, but they weren’t comfortable at all. It’s true that after the 1-0 draw, we were a little down in spirit, but we still kept pushing and competing.’
Meanwhile, Bilbao head coach, Ernesto Valverde, believes his players struggled with Arsenal’s physicality as the game progressed.
‘It was a fairly even match, to be honest,’ Valverde said.
‘We knew they’re very strong in individual duels, and from the start, we tried to put pressure on them or hinder their way out. It was a very tense match, a somewhat disjointed game, and we were intent on taking advantage of our chances.
‘We had them, and as the game progressed, it seemed like someone was going to decide it with a play, but they caught us out with Martinelli’s play, and it hurt us.
‘As the game progressed, you could see they had the strength we struggled with. The important thing is that we were recognisable, despite the problems we may have, and with an extraordinary atmosphere. I’m sorry we didn’t deliver a victory.’
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