Match Day Thread Club Brugge vs Arsenal - Matchday Thread (Champions League)

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BrunelGunner

BrunelGunner

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Venue: Jan Breydel Stadium
Date: Wednesday 10th December 2025
KO time: 20:00 GMT

There can be no head-to-head record because these two teams have never faced each other in a competitive fixture.

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Genuinely couldn't give less of a **** about this game. My focus is exclusively on Wolves.

Need to rotate as much as possible, but at the same time, need to keep players sharp as possible in preparation for that Wolves game.

If it were up to me, this would be my team:

Kepa

White (play for one half, then one of Josh Nichols/Brayden Clarke plays in the second half - I'm so serious).
Saliba (if he's back fit, play for one half then bring on Timber for second half)
Salmon (bring on Hincapie for second half)
Lewis-Skelly

Norgaard
Merino
Nwaneri

Madueke
Gyokeres
Dowman

No chance of this happening whatsoever, but it's what I'd do.
 
BrunelGunner said:
Genuinely couldn't give less of a **** about this game. My focus is exclusively on Wolves.

Need to rotate as much as possible, but at the same time, need to keep players sharp as possible in preparation for that Wolves game.

If it were up to me, this would be my team:

Kepa

White (play for one half, then one of Josh Nichols/Brayden Clarke plays in the second half - I'm so serious).
Saliba (if he's back fit, play for one half then bring on Timber for second half)
Salmon (bring on Hincapie for second half)
Lewis-Skelly

Norgaard
Merino
Nwaneri

Madueke
Gyokeres
Dowman

No chance of this happening whatsoever, but it's what I'd do.
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Yeah - feel the same way about this game... except for one thing... it is a chance to get back some confidence.
On the flip side following up a loss against Villa with another loss would not be good.

I am not really buying any claims of tiredness and if I hear it from managers or players I read it as a very bad sign - looking for excuses.
I didn't see Villa players slowing down late in the match - and their other players have played just as many minutes as ours.
 
Brugge manager Nicky Hayen has been sacked ahead of the Arsenal game <yikes>

That's quite a big surprise as he was quite revered by the fans and, judging by the reaction online, their fanbase are not happy with that decision at all.

Appears as if it'll be an interim manager in charge ahead of this one.
 
Saliba, Trossard and Rice will all be missing the Brugge game.

Dowman (who is now injured for 'weeks' after the U21s match vs Man Utd) has been replaced in the registered players list for this phase of the CL by Gabriel Jesus.
 
Comical that we’re still top having played a game less. Win tomorrow, play a complete b team in the inter and kairat games and we’ll still probably finish top.
 
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cini65 said:
Comical that we’re still top having played a game less. Win tomorrow, play a complete b team in the inter and kairat games and we’ll still probably finish top.
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This was never really an important stage of the competition - honestly anything in the top 24 is good enough. We'd basically qualified before we started the first game. The extra game from finishing outside the top 8, does not matter as PSG showed last year. It's all about form in the latter part of the season when the knockout stage begins.
We should probably have been playing back ups in many positions in every game in the CL group stage.
The quality of the completion until later on is poor.
 
Dowman - you guessed it - got injured playing in a closed door match vs Man Utd.
He has been withdrawn from the CL official squad which may indicate he will be out for some time. I read it is an ankle ligament injury and it will be at least 2 months out.
Gabriel Jesus has been brought into the squad.
 
Jayramfootball said:
This was never really an important stage of the competition - honestly anything in the top 24 is good enough. We'd basically qualified before we started the first game. The extra game from finishing outside the top 8, does not matter as PSG showed last year. It's all about form in the latter part of the season when the knockout stage begins.
We should probably have been playing back ups in many positions in every game in the CL group stage.
The quality of the completion until later on is poor.
Click to expand...
It only doesn't matter to French, German or Spanish teams because they can rest 90% of their first team in 90% of their league matches and still win them without breaking a sweat because their leagues are primarily filled with gash. As evidenced last year by PSG resting their entire XI before the second leg. We can't rest as much as teams in those leagues because we play in a competitive league and it would cost us in the league. We don't want games building up. Two more games to play? No thanks. But otherwise yes, as long as you're top 8 who cares where you really finish.
 
cini65 said:
It only doesn't matter to French, German or Spanish teams because they can rest 90% of their first team in 90% of their league matches and still win them without breaking a sweat because their leagues are primarily filled with gash. As evidenced last year by PSG resting their entire XI before the second leg. We can't rest as much as teams in those leagues because we play in a competitive league and it would cost us in the league. We don't want games building up. Two more games to play? No thanks. But otherwise yes, as long as you're top 8 who cares where you really finish.
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That would be the argument for the other way round.
I agree the European league teams can rest players in their leagues so the CL teams can be strongest.
For us it's different. We have a real league and need to focus on it and during the group stage we could easily play our second team and qualify through the group.
The team in 24th has just 1 win in 6 games!
The group stage is just a cash cow, it's not real competition for the bigger teams.

As for the knockout stages, it is what it is. Huge advantage for the European league teams because English clubs have to compete week in week out. An English team would win the CL every year if it were a level playing field.
 
Well, that's quite a surprising XI.

Norgaard at CB. Lewis-Skelly comes in. Zubimendi starts. No Nwaneri...

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Timber and Calafiori both suffered 'really bad kicks' against Villa, which is why the former isn't part of the squad, and the latter is on the bench.

What I can't quite get is why Timber travelled if he was never going to feature tonight? May as well have left him at home, no?
 
Wow, what a superb solo goal from Madueke that was! Tremendous strike <applause>. Great change of pace, sorts his feet out quickly and a sweetly hit strike that hits the underside of the bar and goes in.
 
HT. 0-1.

Stunning goal, but that was a very ropey game. Bizarre half - we started off well and looked well on top for 25 minutes, then Brugge got a foothold of the game and started to kill us in transition. They have so many powerful, athletic runners and when you're up against a midfield of Merino and Zubimendi, there's no running power or legs in that midfield.

We've been giving them too much time and space on the ball when they attack. Forbs in particular has been a massive threat that we haven't been able to deal with that well.

Raya's kept us in it you have to say.

Our most likely way of scoring has been through Madueke.

Gyokeres has had virtually no service again, though. He's feeding off scraps.
 
TheBear said:
Martinelli has been really poor again.
Click to expand...

His lack of ball retention and one-dimensional style of play is too predictable. It's also predictable for opposition fullbacks which is why they defend against him so easily.

I'm still convinced he shouldn't be playing as a touchline winger. He's better with less touches and closer to the penalty box where his goalscoring instincts are great.
 
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