Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a press conference at Emirates Stadium, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a training session at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a press conference at Emirates Stadium, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, left, and Oleksandr Zinchenko during a training session at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arsenal players during a training session at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arsenal players during a training session at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
Arteta rallies Arsenal to believe in Champions League glory ahead of semifinals against PSG
LONDON (AP) 鈥 Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is urging his players to believe they can win the Champions League for the first time because they have already beaten 鈥渢he best opposition you can face in the competition.鈥
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta during a press conference at Emirates Stadium, London, Monday, April 28, 2025, a day ahead of their Champions League semi final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain. (Adam Davy/PA via AP)
LONDON (AP) 鈥 Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is urging his players to believe they can win the Champions League for the first time because they have already beaten 鈥渢he best opposition you can face in the competition.鈥
Defeating defending champion Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate in the quarterfinals 鈥 after victories and 鈥 has raised expectations that Arsenal can go all the way.
Arteta acknowledged everyone associated with Arsenal is feeling the weight of history heading into the , starting with the first leg at Emirates Stadium on Tuesday, and he wants his team to embrace that.
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Asked whether Arsenal should be classed as the tournament favorite after its displays against Madrid, Arteta said they have 鈥済enerated enthusiasm and possibilities no one probably expected.鈥
鈥淏ut when you look at our history 鈥 and you go back to our history 鈥 we have never done it,鈥 he said. 鈥淪o there is so much to do. Hopefully if someone believes we can do it, it鈥檚 because of the performances and what the team is transmitting against big opposition.鈥
Arsenal lost the Champions League final to Barcelona in 2006 and in the semifinals to Manchester United in 2009, and hasn鈥檛 been back to the last four since.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of people working at the club for many, many years and they鈥檝e never been in this position,鈥 Arteta said. 鈥淭hat tells you how unique and beautiful it is. It is the biggest competition, the European Cup, and we鈥檝e never done it. We need to earn the right to be in that final.鈥
Arteta is taking inspiration from Arsenal for the first time since 2007 after beating record eight-time champion Lyon 4-1 on Sunday.
鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible what they have done,鈥 Arteta said. 鈥淭o achieve it in the manner they have done it, they鈥檝e shown the road, the pathway, how we can do it.鈥
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In a rallying cry, Arteta urged fans to 鈥渂ring your boots, your shorts, your T-shirts and let鈥檚 play every ball together鈥 against PSG in the hope of recreating the atmosphere at the Emirates for the first leg against Madrid, which Arsenal won 3-0.
鈥淚f we want to do something special,鈥 he said, 鈥渢hat place has to be something special that we haven鈥檛 seen.鈥
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