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Sports Mole looks at the head-to-head record and previous meetings between English giants Arsenal and Ligue 1 upstarts Lens.

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Head-to-head record

Previous meetings: 6
Arsenal wins: 3
Draws: 1
Lens wins: 2

Both returning to the top tier of European football for the 2023-24 Champions League campaign, Arsenal and Lens renewed hostilities at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis in that year's first group fixture, where Gabriel Jesus's opening goal proved to be for nought.

Indeed, a fine Adrien Thomasson equaliser in the first half preceded a first-time Elye Wahi strike after the break as the Gunners suffered their first Champions League loss in over six years, and only their second from six previous meetings with Lens.

However, a third win against Les Merlus arrived at the Emirates in November 2023, where Mikel Arteta's men hit Lens for six without reply through six different scorers, cruising into the last 16 as group winners in emphatic style.

Given Les Merlus' lack of European nous in the 21st century, meetings between the two sides have been unsurprisingly sparse, and Lens' 2-1 win in October 2023 marked a reunion 23 years after the clubs had locked horns in the semi-finals of the 1999-2000 UEFA Cup.

Arsene Wenger's men proved too strong for the Ligue 1 powerhouses on both occasions that year, as Dennis Bergkamp struck after just two minutes in a 1-0 first-leg win at Highbury, before Thierry Henry and Nwankwo Kanu propelled the Gunners to a 2-1 success across the English Channel; Arsenal would go on to suffer heartbreak against Galatasaray in the final, though.

Arsenal's two-legged beating of Lens in the second tier of European football represented their revenge for the 1998-99 Champions League group stage, where the two sides met in a competitive setting for the very first time, and the French outfit emerged with their pride intact on both occasions.

The clubs' inaugural meeting took place at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis, where Marc Overmars's opener was cancelled out by an injury-time leveller from former France international Tony Vairelles, and just over two months later in late November 1998, Arsenal lost 1-0 in London as Ray Parlour was given his marching orders.

Owing to his strikes at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis and the Emirates in 2023-24, Jesus leads the way in this head-to-head with two goals, the only player to strike more than once against the other.

Previous meetings

Nov 29, 2023: Arsenal 6-0 Lens (Champions League Group Stage)
Oct 03, 2023: Lens 2-1 Arsenal (Champions League Group Stage)
Apr 20, 2000: Lens 1-2 Arsenal (UEFA Cup Semi-Finals)
Apr 06, 2000: Arsenal 1-0 Lens (UEFA Cup Semi-Finals)
Nov 25, 1998: Arsenal 0-1 Lens (Champions League Group Stage)
Sep 16, 1998: Lens 1-1 Arsenal (Champions League Group Stage) body check tags ::

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