A heartbroken Mikel Arteta was very honest as he gave his immediate reaction to Arsenal losing the Champions League final to Paris Saint-Germain
Mikel Arteta spoke honestly after the loss to Paris Saint-Germain(Image: TNT)
Mikel Arteta has admitted Arsenal “missed out on the biggest one” after losing the Champions League final to Paris Saint-Germain. In the build-up to the clash in Budapest, the north Londoners and their fan base had been celebrating their first Premier League title triumph since 2004.
They looked set for more celebrations when Kai Havertz fired in an early goal for the Gunners in the seventh minute of the clash at the Puskas Arena. However, Ousmane Dembele’s equaliser from the penalty spot levelled the game and the two European giants were stuck in a stalemate from then on.
Penalties were required, and Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhaes were the unlucky Arsenal duo to miss from the spot. After the match, a devastated Arteta admitted the loss was a missed opportunity for his side.
In his post-match interview, when asked about his feelings towards his players after the loss to the French heavyweights, Arteta said: “I’m so proud of them. I think this season that we have had, under the circumstances that we’ve been through, they have given us so much joy.
“It’s a privilege to manage these players. I think the way they carry this badge and how much they put into it, we’ve got a big one, and we missed out on the biggest one.”
While he made it clear he was heartbroken not to leave Budapest with the trophy and a winner’s medal, Arteta also put the loss into a bigger picture.
He added: “ We haven’t done it for 22 years, so can you imagine and it’s only the second time in our history that we have done it.
“We need to recognise the season we have had, but at the moment nobody can take the pain away from you.”
Arteta was also unhappy with a key decision which did not go the Gunners’ way. In extra time, substitute Noni Madueke surged down the right-hand side and looked to have got past PSG defender Nuno Mendes.
But the pair appeared to get tangled together, and they fell into the penalty area. It was difficult to see who pulled who down, and the referee, officials and VAR decided not to give the spot-kick.
In his post-match interview, Arteta made it clear he was not happy the Gunners did not receive a penalty. He said: “ I watched it back and you can visibly (see a) penalty.
” Especially when you see the penalties in the competition this season. The referee has made that decision, he made a different one with Mosquera and, yeah, that’s an important one.”
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