Champions League draw: Remarkable stat shows why every club should fear facing Mikel Arteta's side in Europe

Arsenal were the only team that finished any of the three UEFA 2025-26 league phases with a 100% record.

The draw for the Champions League knockout round phase playoffs has been made, with record European champions Real Madrid set to face Benfica, while holders Paris Saint-Germain will lock horns with Monaco.

Real Madrid and PSG may be grateful for the fact that they cannot face Arsenal in the last 16 if they negotiate their way through the playoffs.

The Gunners will face Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta, Olympiacos and Bayer Leverkusen in the last 16, and they will be heavy favourites to progress following their impressive dominance in the league phase.

Arsenal finish league phase with astonishing state

Mikel Arteta's side finished in top spot with a perfect record of eight wins from eight games, including a 3-2 success in Wednesday's home clash with Kairat Almaty thanks to goals from Viktor Gyokeres, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli.

Elsewhere, Lyon finished in first position in the Europa League, while Chelsea's sister club, Strasbourg, claimed top spot in the Conference League.

Remarkably, Arsenal were the only team to finish with a 100% record out of the 108 clubs that took part across the three league phases.

The Gunners were also the highest scorers of the 108 teams, netting 23 goals in the league phase, including a minimum of three goals in each of their last six European outings.

Did Arsenal have the best defensive record?

Arteta's side is built on a resolute backline, so it is no surprise that they finished the league phase with the best defensive record in the competition, with just four goals conceded.

However, Cypriot club AEK Larnaca actually finished with the fewest goals conceded across the three competitions.

Impressively, AEK conceded just one goal in the Conference League league phase, although they played two fewer games than the teams in the Champions League and Europa League.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe was the leading league phase scorer across the three competitions, netting 13 goals in seven appearances, including a hat-trick against Kairat and four against Olympiacos.

Unfortunately for Mbappe, his impressive form was not enough to secure his team a top-eight finish.