Arsenal was beaten at home and away by Paris Saint-Germain in their semi-final of the Champions League, while for the first time since 2006 they missed a place in the final in the final
Arsenal -Manager Mikel Arteta believes that Achraf Hakimi should not have been on the field to score his team in the Champions League on Wednesday. Paris Saint-Germain defender Hakimi scored the second goal of his team in a 2-1 win in the Parc des Princes, which completed a 3-1 total victory.
Arteta, however, believed that Hakimi should have missed the game by suspension. The Moroccan international was already on a yellow card when he polluted Gabriel Martinelli in the final phase of the first stage, but avoided a second booking.
“To us, Hakimi who should certainly not have been in the game in the last 10 minutes of the first stage, so he should not have played and score in the second stage at all. There are many random things in football,” said Arteta.
An early Ousmane Dembele goal in North London was able to take a narrow lead back to France, and they expanded it when Fabian Ruiz scored a bent first half goal. The goal of Hakimi made it 3-0, with a late Bukayo Saka effort not enough for the Gunners.
Arteta was happy with how his team played in Europe this season, but acknowledged that this term was not enough. “It's not about the winning probability, it's about letting it happen and let it count,” he said. “If you look at the most important stat that I normally give you, the best platform to win football matches is crystal clear – that was better.”
PSG boss Luis Enrique has emphasized the importance of being able to play a Champions League final for the fans-IS that was not possible during the edition behind closed thousand 2020. “This will be our first Champions League final with our fans; without them it is not really a final this weekend.
“If there is one team it deserves to win it purely how long they have been waiting for it, it is Paris Saint-Germain. I know the club was founded in the year in which I was born. Let's hope that that connection turns out to be really and that we can win the Champions League!”
The next for Arsenal is a match against Premier League champions Liverpool. Victory at Anfield ensures that the Arteta team qualifies for next season's Champions League, thanks to two of the Chasing Pack – fifth place Chelsea and the sixth place Nottingham Forest – play each other on the last day.
When asked how he will lift his team for the last three league matches, Arteta gave a blunt response. “This is where we are,” he said.
“If you get so close to winning big trophies and you don't reach it, it must be part of the trip. You have to be able to immediately enter a different competition and perform it at the highest level – that's it.”
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