During the 180 minutes of the semi-final, Arsenal scored one goal, in the final minute of the second leg against Paris Saint-Germain, but Gunners coach Mikel Arteta has no doubt that they came out the better team. Not just in this tie.
"I think we were the best team in the Champions League as far as I could see, but we were eliminated," the Basque expert told TNT sports.
PSG reached the final with 1-0 wins in London and 2-1 in Paris, while Arsenal missed three big chances at the start of the second leg.
"And in this match, the better team lost, that's what the Paris Saint-Germain bench told me. Their goalkeeper was the best player in this match," Arteta added.
Afterwards, journalists asked the "Saints" coach Luis Enrique at a press conference why PSG thought Arsenal was better.
"I don't agree with that at all. Mikel Arteta is a great friend of mine, but I don't agree with that at all. Arsenal played smart, but in the two legs we scored more goals than them, and that's the most important thing in football. They played a great match and made us suffer, but we deserved to be in the final," Luis Enrique pointed out.
After difficult years for the north London club, Arteta managed to revive Arsenal, returning them to the top of the Premier League and the Champions League, and in his five and a half years on the bench, the club won only one trophy - the FA Cup in 2020.
Additionally, Arsenal have failed to advance past the last four semi-final encounters - in the 2020/21 Europa League, the 2022 and 2025 League Cup and this season's Champions League.
DON'T MISS IT
Bonus video:
