Arsenal join Atletico Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen in Champions League Last 16

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The jury may still be out for many Arsenal fans over the future of coach Arsenal Wenger but few can argue about the Frenchman leading the Londoners to the Champions League knockout stages for a 15th consecutive year.

He achieved his latest qualification after goals from Yaya Sanogo, his first for the club at the 19th attempt, and Alexis Sanchez secured a 2-0 home win over Borussia Dortmund.

Dortmund’s compatriots Bayer Leverkusen and Spaniards Atletico Madrid also made it through to the Last 16 on Wednesday.

Read: Messi breaks Champions League goalscoring record

“It’s not easy to be consistent so I am very proud of that,” Wenger said after the game.

“The club deserves a lot of credit.”

The problem in many Arsenal supporters’ eyes is that the fine record merely papers over cracks that may well be exposed when the Last 16 kicks off in February.

The Gunners, who have never won the competition but who finished runners-up in 2006, have failed to reach the quarterfinals in each of the last four seasons – losing to Bayern Munich (twice), Milan and Barcelona.

Compounding this frustration is the fact that the side has seldom impressed in the Premier League, with Wenger last finishing in the top two in 2005.

On Tuesday, he may have been conscious that he was taking on the man often touted as a leading contender to replace him at the Emirates – Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp.

Victory against a side that had already secured qualification came at a familiar cost though, with both Sanogo and midfielder Mikel Arteta going off with injuries.

Little surprise then that Wenger was hoping for some positives, following a season in which key players like Olivier Giroud, Jack Wilshere and goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny have all been forced onto the sidelines.

“From now until February we must improve as a team, get encouragement from this win and hopefully have more players back,” Wenger added.

In Group D’s other game, Anderlecht won their first match of the campaign when beating ten-man Galatasaray 2-0, with Chancel Mbemba netting both goals.

Having ended Dortmund’s 100% record, Arsenal have an outside chance of now finishing top of the group – providing they win in Galatasaray, and Dortmund trip up at home to Anderlecht – and so avoiding the heavyweights in the next round.

Bundesliga Blowout

That was precisely what Bayer Leverkusen were hoping to do but they capped off a record week for German sides – albeit for the wrong reasons.

They lost 1-0 at home to Monaco which, in addition to Dortmund’s defeat and those of both Bayern Munich and Schalke on Tuesday, meant Germany’s four Champions League entrants all lost in the same week for the first time ever.

Monaco scored with their only effort on target, just as they did when hosting Leverkusen in September, and Group C is still wide open – with three sides capable of going through.

Leverkusen still managed to ensure progress on Wednesday but their nine points are now only one better than Monaco’s, while Zenit St Petersburg – who beat Benfica 1-0 – have moved onto seven.

Meanwhile, last season’s beaten finalists Atletico Madrid created their own slice of history when progressing from the group stage in consecutive years for the first time ever.

A Mario Mandzukic hat-trick helped them to a 4-0 victory over Olympiakos and the Spaniards will qualify top of Group A unless they lose heavily in Juventus next month.

The Italians need a draw to progress after winning 2-0 in Sweden against Malmo, with Fernando Llorente and Carlos Tevez earning Juve’s first away win in the group stage for two years.

Perfect Start

Defending champions Real Madrid are still the only side in the competition with a 100% record after Cristiano Ronaldo’s goal in Switzerland was enough to a earn a 1-0 win over Basel.

The victory was the fifteenth in a row for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, so equaling Real’s best runs, achieved in the 1960-61 season under Miguel Munoz and three seasons ago under Jose Mourinho.

Victory away to Malaga in La Liga on Saturday will create a new record.

In Group B’s other game, Liverpool stopped a run of four consecutive defeats but still had to settle for a 2-2 draw away to Ludogorets.

The Bulgarians scored late to deny the five-time champions all three points, but the equalizer changed little – with Liverpool still needing to beat Basel at Anfield next month to go through.

Ludogorets are the only side that Liverpool have scored against in the group, whereas Ronaldo, who has now netted in his last 12 away Champions League games, has struck against every team.

In a statistic Arsenal fans may want to shy away from, the Portuguese has scored 43 Champions League goals since the start of the 2011-12 season – precisely the same tally as that boasted by Wenger’s Arsenal in the same period.