Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta: 'We were much better' than PSG across both UEFA Champions League semi-final legs as Parisians set showdown date with Inter

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Mikel Arteta thought Arsenal were "much better" than Paris Saint-Germain over the two legs of their UEFA Champions League semi-final, and felt his side should have been 3-0 up within the first 20 minutes of their second leg at the Parc des Princes. Arsenal have been ousted from the competition, as PSG claimed their third successive Premier League scalp with a 3-1 aggregate victory.

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said his side were "much better" than Paris Saint-Germain across both UEFA Champions League semi-final legs, and felt goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was the difference between the two teams.

The Gunners were sent crashing out of the Champions League via a 3-1 aggregate defeat to the Parisians, as Arsenal missed a host of chances at the Parc des Princes in their quest to chalk back a 1-0 deficit from the first leg.

Arteta spoke to TNT Sports after the defeat on Wednesday, which spelt an end to his side's chances of lifting silverware for another season, having not done so since 2020.

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"First of all, congratulations PSG for reaching the final," Arteta said. "An assessment I will make when I'm a little bit cooler. The feeling straight away from the other bench is we were much better than them.

"When you look at the two games, the best player on the pitch has been the goalkeeper; he's made a difference for them in the tie.

"I thought we were very close, much closer than our results showed. I'm very proud of the players, what we've done today, the way we started, how we handled the pressure, the amount of pressure after 20 minutes, it should be 3-0.

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"But there is something extra you need in the competition to go your way and it didn't."

Ultimately, it was goals either side of half-time from Fabian Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi that left Arteta's side staring in the face of a European exit. Bukayo Saka netted what proved to be a consolation in the 76th minute, and missed a gilt-edged chance to cut further into the deficit as he fired over in front of an open net late on.

"We were very close, for long periods of both games we were much better than them," Arteta continued. "But we are not there, and that has to hurt.

"If we want to win this competition, we need to realise that there are some things that are on us, and you shouldn't be understanding we are out."

In their quest for a maiden Champions League triumph, Arsenal finished third in the 36-team league phase, while they also ousted holders Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate in the quarter-final.

Arteta felt his side were the best team in this year's competition, and again reiterated the standout performance of Donnarumma across the two legs to keep The Gunners at bay.

"I don't think there's been a better team in the competition this season, what I have seen," Arteta said. "But we are out tonight. This competition is about the boxes and in the boxes there are normally the strikers and the goalkeeper. He was the best player in both games."

Arsenal's missed chances in both legs of the semi-final again emphasised the lack of striker options, with Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz having been ruled out long-term, and Mikel Merino operating as an auxiliary forward.

Arteta credited his side's display in light of the "context" between the two sides, after PSG were afforded the luxury of resting key squad members in their most recent Ligue 1 match.

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"I'm so proud of the boys and they deserve a lot of credit for what they're doing in the context and situation," Arteta said. "The amount of injuries, we have arrived here in the worst state that you can arrive as a team.

"They [PSG] had a week [of rest], we come here in a completely different context and still did that. That gives me a lot of positives for the future. But tonight I am very upset."

PSG will face Inter in the Champions League final in Munich on May 31, with the Parisians looking to clinch the trophy for the first time in the club's history.

Luis Enrique's side also remain in the hunt for a treble, having secured the Ligue 1 title with six matches to spare and are facing Reims in the Coupe de France final on May 24.

Watch and stream the 2024/25 UEFA Champions League final live on TNT Sports and discovery+

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