Mikel Arteta reveals what PSG coaches told him after Arsenal’s Champions League exit
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Mikel Arteta revealed that even Paris Saint-Germain’s coaching staff felt Arsenal had been the superior side, despite the Gunners’ heart-breaking Champions League semi-final exit on Wednesday night.
Arsenal, trailing 1-0 from the first leg at the Emirates, started brightly in the return leg at the Parc des Princes but were repeatedly denied by the brilliance of Gianluigi Donnarumma. PSG capitalised on their opportunities, with Fabian Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi scoring on either side of half-time to put Luis Enrique’s men firmly in control of the tie.
Bukayo Saka gave Arsenal hope with a late goal, but it wasn’t enough as the North London side fell to a 3-1 defeat on aggregate, ending their European dreams for the season.
Speaking after the match, Arteta admitted the result was difficult to take, especially given how well his team performed across the two legs. The Spaniard disclosed that PSG’s own coaches conceded Arsenal had been the better team.
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“First of all, congratulations to PSG for reaching the final,” Arteta told TNT Sports. “I’ll give a full assessment when I’ve had time to reflect, but the feedback I got immediately from their bench was that we were much better than them.
“When you look at the two games, their best player has been the goalkeeper. He made the difference in the tie. We were very close—much closer than the result suggests—but unfortunately, we are out. I’m very proud of my players.
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“After 20 minutes, it should have been 3-0. In this competition, you need that little bit extra to go your way, and it didn’t. For long spells in both games, we were the better side, but we’re not through, and that hurts.”
Despite the disappointment, Arteta took pride in his team’s performance and insisted Arsenal had proven themselves to be one of the best teams in this year’s competition.
“I don’t think there’s been a better team than Arsenal in the competition from what I’ve seen, but we’re out,” he added. “This competition is about the boxes—strikers and goalkeepers—and theirs were the best across both games.
“I’m proud of the players. They deserve enormous credit for what they’ve achieved given the circumstances and the injuries we’ve faced—probably the worst state you could be in coming into a semi-final. To come here under those conditions and perform like that gives me a lot of hope for the future. But tonight, I’m very upset.”
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