Martin Zubimendi became our second summer signing when he swapped Real Sociedad for N5, but how much do you know about our latest new face?
The Spanish international has been a pillar of consistency throughout his career for both club and country, helping Spain to glory at Euro 2024, and while his rise has been well documented, here are some facts you might not know about the 26-year-old.
Familiar upbringings
Martin Zubimendi will be working closely Mikel Arteta in the future, but it’s their past that is also linked. Both born in San Sebastian, Basque Country, the pair also share a similar route through to professional football, having played for youth team Antiguoko. The famed youth side is stacked with notable alumni, having also developed the likes of Bournemouth manager Andrei Iraola and Real Madrid boss Xabi Alonso.
Euro 2024 impact
When Rodri was substituted at half-time in the Euro 2024 final against England, many believed the Three Lions had the upper hand going into the second half. Rodri’s replacement was Zubimendi, who turned the tide in Spain’s favour. He completed 92% of his passes, made three recoveries and won all five of his duels as La Roja scored two second-half goals to win 2-1 in Berlin.
Milestone moments
Having made his debut in April 2019 after coming through the academy ranks after leaving Antiguoko. It would take him almost three years to bag his first goal, which came in the Europa League against RB Leipzig. Having waited so long for his first professional strike, his second came along 17 days later, netting the winner in a 1-0 victory over Alaves in La Liga.
Read more
36 top photos of Zubimendi’s first day at Arsenal
Three Dozen
Martin will be donning the number 36 for us in the 2025/26 season, a number that’s close to the midfielder’s heart. Martin wore the jersey in 2019 when making his debut for Real Sociedad against Getafe. He went on to play in the no.36 jersey on 52 occasions before switching to number three and then four for the remainder of his Real Sociedad career.
Arsenal connection
Martin will have some familiar faces when he meets his new teammates at the Sobha Realty Training Centre. The midfielder has played club football alongside Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard at Real Sociedad. He has also featured with David Raya for the Spanish national team, alongside Merino.
Merino Magic
While he is familiar with several players in our squad, one player who stands out is Mikel Merino. The pair have played 169 matches together for both club and country, amassing 11,229 minutes on the pitch at the same time. The duo linked up for two goals during their time at Real Sociedad, with Mikel setting up Martin for a 94th-minute equaliser against Alaves in 2024 and doing the same against Girona in 2022.
Read more
Zubimendi: “I set my sights on Arsenal”
Olympic Dreams
Not many players get the opportunity to represent their nations at the Olympic Games but that was the case for Martin at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. He featured five times during the competition, which saw Spain lose to Gabriel Martinelli’s Brazil in the final, meaning they picked up the silver medal.
Hometown hero
Having made his debut the season prior, Martin would go on to have a hand in helping Real Sociedad claim a first major trophy since 1987 by winning the 2019-20 Copa del Rey. Martin played the full 90 minutes in a 1-0 victory over Basque rivals Athletic Club in the final, starting the match next to Merino, who won player of the match, and former Gunner Nacho Monreal.
Spanish Link
We’ve enjoyed great success with a host of Spanish stars over the years. A total of 16 players from the country have put on our colours, with seven Spaniards making over 100 appearances for the club: Cesc Fabregas, Manuel Almunia, Jose Antonio Reyes, Santi Cazorla, Nacho Monreal, Hector Bellerin and our manager, Mikel Arteta.
Read more
Quiz: Name every Spaniard to play for Arsenal
Chess champ
Outside of football, Martin has a talent for chess, a game he’s played since he was a child. At 11 years old, Martin won the Gipuzkoa chess championships in the under-12 category. On his love of chess, Martin said: “It’s a game that requires you to have everything under control. In both sports, the midfield is crucial because it defines the style of play.”
Breaking the lines
Breaking down low blocks can make the difference between winning and losing and in order to do that, a line-breaking pass is a must. During 2024/25, only three players produced more line-breaking passes in La Liga than Martin Zubimendi. His 238 line-breakers were only beaten by a trio of Real Madrid players in Luka Modric, Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni.
Basque Joiners
While Martin is making his way from San Sebastian, he’s not the only player hailing from the Basque Country to be joining the ranks. Kepa Arrizabalaga put pen to paper to become our first signing of the summer window and also hails from the region. Kepa was born in Ondarroa, approximately 60km from Martin in San Sebastian.
Copyright 2025 The Arsenal Football Club Limited. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to www.arsenal.com as the source.
