Gary Lineker knows what it takes to operate at the sharp end of European football, and he is not quite buying Arsenal as Champions League winners just yet.
Arsenal have climbed the continental ladder over the last three seasons, step by step, until last term they were one game from the summit. They reached the final, stared at the trophy, and watched PSG walk away with it for a second year running.
That defeat still hangs in the air around the club. It should.
They are widely tipped as one of the sides most likely to end PSG’s grip on the competition this season. They have continuity, they have structure, they have a manager who has turned them into a ruthless, modern machine. On paper, they have the tools to take revenge if the draw throws the two clubs together again in the knockouts.
Lineker, though, sees a gap at the very top of the pyramid.
“One of the favourites” – but missing the very top tier
Speaking to Mirror Football, the former England striker placed Arsenal firmly among the contenders, then drew a clear line between them and Europe’s most star-studded squads.
“Arsenal will be one of the favourites,” he said, “but I don't think overall they've got quite the superstars that some of the other big guns in Europe have. I do think Barcelona might be quite tasty and take some beating this season now they've got Rodri in there as well in that crucial position.”
It’s a blunt assessment of where Arsenal stand. Collective quality? Undeniable. Individual stardust at the level that bends entire ties? That’s where Lineker hesitates.
His view doesn’t dismiss Arsenal’s progress; it underlines the brutal reality of this competition. Champions League titles often swing on a single moment, a single player who can tilt the axis of a game when everything else is balanced.
Arsenal’s climb – and the giants in the way
Arsenal’s recent European journey has been defined by steady improvement. From early exits to genuine belief, they now enter the tournament not just hoping to compete, but expecting to go deep. Last season’s final appearance reset the bar. Anything less than another serious run will feel like a step backwards.
Standing in their way, again, are the usual heavyweights. PSG remain a looming obstacle, the team that denied them the trophy and the benchmark for where Arsenal want to be. A rematch in the knockout rounds would crackle with narrative: the finalists reunited, one chasing a three‑peat, the other hunting payback.
But Lineker’s eye is also drawn to Spain.
Barcelona, he believes, are ready to muscle their way back to the front of the queue, with Rodri anchoring their midfield in what he calls a “crucial position”. That addition, in his view, gives them the kind of spine and control that makes them “take some beating” over two legs.
Arsenal, then, are not short of rivals. They are entering a tournament stacked with clubs who not only possess strong systems, but also the kind of headline names that define eras.
Can structure beat stardom?
Lineker’s verdict lands on a simple, uncomfortable point for Arsenal: their squad might be deep, balanced and fiercely competitive, but in a competition where individual brilliance often decides semi‑finals and finals, he is not convinced they have enough true superstars to cross the final line.
Arsenal will not see it that way. They will point to their growth, their near miss last season, and the hunger that comes from losing a final. They will look at PSG, at Barcelona, at the rest of Europe’s elite, and believe they belong in that conversation.
The question now is whether their collective can overpower the constellation of names around them, or whether Lineker’s warning about star quality proves to be the difference when the trophy is on the line.
