Champions League
Mikel Arteta Urges Team To Overcome Setbacks And Seize Champions League Chances
Mikel Arteta calls on Arsenal to bounce back from a setback in their Premier League title pursuit and seize the opportunity to reach the Champions League semi-finals for the first time in 15 years. The Gunners are set to face Bayern Munich in a finely balanced quarter-final tie, with the first leg ending in a 2-2 draw in London.
Following their first defeat in the Premier League in 2024, a 2-0 loss to Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal find themselves trailing Manchester City by two points with six games remaining.
Arteta emphasized the importance of not dwelling on this defeat and instead focusing on the hard work that has brought them to this stage in their first Champions League campaign in seven years.
“A performance that puts us in the Champions League semi-final,” said Arteta when asked what reaction he wants from his side. The prep has been to achieve that. We have earned it for 10 months and everything we did last season. Tomorrow we have an unbelievable opportunity to make it happen”.
He continued, “If we make it happen tomorrow it will be a high emotional state. Something as a club we haven’t achieved for the last 15 years and that’s the opportunity. Most of our players have not experienced this, they are super-motivated and confident.”
After a remarkable run at the start of the year, where they secured 31 out of a possible 33 points in the Premier League and scored 35 goals in 11 games, Arsenal have faced setbacks in recent days. Bayern Munich, who have lost their German champions title after 12 years, managed to exploit vulnerabilities in Arsenal’s performance before Villa’s surprising win.
Furthermore, Arsenal is facing fitness worries regarding two key players ahead of the second leg. Both Bukayo Saka and captain Martin Odegaard sustained injuries towards the end of the Villa match, raising concerns about their availability for the upcoming crucial fixture.
“Hopefully they will be available,” added Arteta. “We had only less than 48 hours to recover for the game and we’ve done very little training. So we’ll assess them tomorrow and see how they are.”
