Mikel Arteta doubled when he insisted that Ko'd Arsenal was the best team of the Champions League – and told Luis Enrique to 'look at the statistics'.
Arteta was mocked by Paris Saint-Germain boss Enrique because he claimed that his men were better than the silk-tied side of losing their semi-3-1 in total.
The Arsenal Chief – just stopped behind Rafa Benitez's notorious' facts' rant – repeated: 'I stay with what I said, 100 percent. I viewed it, seen all statistics.
“If you look at all the important statistics, those who give you the best platform to win football matches, it is crystal clear who was better.
“With an expected goals of five to three, which we had over the two legs, you are normally in the final.”
The statistical claims of Arteta repeated the then Liverpool boss Benitez's Rant about Alex Ferguson, when the Spaniard shot the head of Manchester United with a list of 'facts'.
Arteta said: “If you are confronted with PSG and they blow you away, shake your hands and says:” we are still not ready “.
“If you look them in the eyes, she choked on the way we did there, you were the better team.
“But it's not about the winning probability, it actually lets it count.”
But the Chief Gunners accepted Liverpool “Earning” to become crowned prem winners because his side has taken a “step back”.
Arteta had been under fire because he claimed that the title-winning count of Liverpool-Ze can still reach 91 points less than the 89 are men who had achieved the last term of 822-23 in the last term when they became in Manchester City again.
He said: “It's true. With the amount of points we had, we could have been champions twice.
“But we were not. In the Premier League we went a step back. Liverpool deserves to be champions.”
While the idea of telling his team to set up the Anfield height and Liverpool will give their honorary guard to swallow on Sunday, the Spaniard knows that it is something that his players have to do.
To realize how close they got. To dig deeper to ensure that the boot is on the other foot the next term.
Another campaign of almost accident has been injured, Arteta has been injured, no doubt.
It is now five years old and since the Basque saw how his players Paradeen around an empty Wembley with the FA Cup, the “Covid Final” victory over Chelsea Something from a different era.
Since then, while Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea have all won trophies, Arsenal have not have shortage at the time of truth.
If the unwanted walk-on extras at an Anfield party tomorrow, that point will rub home, as Arteta knows.
He said: “Paris was a very emotional moment.
“It was one of the most sad, but one of the most proud moments I had as an Arsenal manager.
“We have put a lot of hope and energy and work in it and we have not received the outcome. You have to go through it to become stronger and better and that is what we do.
“We offer the figures that win your titles. We have to be a bit more lucky or still do better.
“Again, with what we did in the Champions League, with those figures, you have a big chance to win it. That's why many people thought we could go completely.
“Those two words, 'success' and 'fail', they are not part of my vocabulary.
“But winning trophies bothers me a lot because I love winning and definitely hates losses.
“If it doesn't hurt, it means that you don't like to win as I, that's for sure.”
The fear of some Gunners fans is that Arteta could end up as another “almost man” in the North London, the kind of jibe that they would like to go to Mauricio Pochettino and Spurs when their most bitter rivals were in the local turnout but could not get over the winning line.
Arteta and his “Trust the process” Mantra retain the support of most loyal emirates, but the manager wants his players to feel as bad as the traveling fans shortly before 4.30 pm on Sunday.
He added: “Liverpool has been the best team, the most consistent team. If someone is better, you have to applaud and accept and try to reach that level.
“Something you have to float, motivate you and pain is probably a good one to use.
“If you don't really want to do something, but it's the right thing to do, it's usually a motivation for next season.
“We cannot win the Premier League, that is clear. But in the last 16 days, with three more games to go, we must ensure that we do ourselves proudly and compete with the end in the way we earn.”
For many Arsenal-fans and external critici-wax it failure to address the elephant in the room in January, the lack of an outdoor striker of the club, which was ultimately exactly as expensive as it was broadly predicted.
Press that and the fact that the goals of Mo Salah for Liverpool have been one of the most important differences in the campaign, achieved Arteta.
He asked: “Should I make it clearer in January? Was it clear or not?
“If you score more than 90 goals, you have a big chance to win the Premier League.
“It doesn't guarantee you, but you have a big chance if your defensive record is very good and very reliable.
“Of course there are not many who can place those figures in the Premier League, so I have to improve and love those we have now.
“This is not the time to assess players.”
That is also on Arteta itself. He said: “I have so much to achieve and do. That is what drives me every day.
“The only way to achieve what you want is to have really high standards and requirements.
“We are very, very close to reaching it. I understand the disappointment and criticism. That is all part of it.
“At the end there is one winner and the rest will not win, so they have to reinvent themselves and do better.
“But I have no doubt about these players and their attitude.
“I know how much they still hurt – now we have to show the fight and how much we care about what happens.
“And what we still have to achieve, what a big thing is because we haven't done it yet.”