Mikel Arteta and Arsenal bounced back from a 1-0 loss to Liverpool before the international break with a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Saturday afternoon, thanks to a goal from Viktor Gyokeres and a brace from Martin Zubimendi – and Sky Sports reporter Alex Aljoe has been praised for her post-match interview with the latter.
Keen to win silverware in 2025/26 after three consecutive second-place finishes in the Premier League, Arteta and his team will be pleased with their three-goal haul against Forest, who recently appointed Ange Postecoglou, as they enter an important period of the season: the start of their Champions League campaign and a home match against Manchester City.
To bolster their chase, the north Londoners were busy throughout the summer signing new players, including Gyokeres and English duo Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke. One of the most significant arrivals was former Real Sociedad lynchpin Zubimendi, and the 26-year-old’s transfer is already paying off.
Sky Sports’ Alex Aljoe blows fans away in his interview with Martin Zubimendi.
Alex Aljoe was in charge of chatting with Zubimendi for Sky Sports’ post-match interview, and because the 21-cap Spain international spoke limited English, she began the conversation in Spanish before translating her question word for word for the fans. “What a victory!” Congratulations on your two fantastic goals. Let’s start with your first goal. “Walk us through that one.”
The Alicante-born midfielder scored his first outside-the-box goal in the Premier League, shooting through a sea of white jerseys, surprising Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels. Aljoe translated his words: “I was more focused on thinking about defending because they were on the counter, but then, well, the ball landed at my feet, I took the shot, and it went in.”
Then, Aljoe, whose translation skills were lauded in April after doing the same for Brazil international Marquinhos following Paris Saint-Germain’s 3-2 victory over Aston Villa, questioned Arsenal’s summer signing about his second goal and, more significantly, the delivery from Leandro Trossard.
Aljoe then worked her magic again after Zubimendi responded in Spanish. “He answered, ‘Yeah, it was a fantastic ball by Trossard. It is not easy to score a goal in the Premier League. But, yeah, that was a great header.”
Rising highest at the back stick, the 1999-born enforcer, who scored only 10 goals in 236 games with Sociedad, fired past Sels to make it three for Arteta and co. He and his colleagues wheeled away in celebration, equally surprised and happy.
Zubimendi and Aljoe continued their conversation in Spain, discussing his goalscoring record in La Liga versus England’s top flight, how he, Martin Odegaard, and Mikel Merino formed a midfield three for his former employers, and how they were building momentum for their upcoming games.
Watch Zubimendi’s entire chat with Aljoe below.
Fans have reacted to the Premier League’s posted film, blown away by the presenter’s ability to switch between languages and communicate Zubimendi’s responses so effectively. Keeping it simple, one wrote, “She did brilliantly!” while another echoed, “So impressive.”
“Alex Aljoe is unquestionably one of the best out there. I don’t see anyone else doing this as smoothly as she does.”
“This is brilliant,” one user wrote on X (previously Twitter), while another applauded the female presenter: “Alex Aljoe doing live translation of her own questions AND Zubimendi’s answers is peak efficiency.” “When reporters have RANGE >>>” remarked another, while another noted that it’s a ‘great tough’ for supporters: “Alex Aljoe doing the translation is such a nice touch for fans.”
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