“The top team in the competition is out,” Arteta said.

Frustrated despite their loss to Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-finals, Mikel Arteta thinks Arsenal has been the best team in the Champions League this year.

Goals from Fabian Ruiz and Achraf Hakimi ended Arsenal’s hopes of qualifying for Europe, and Paris Saint-Germain won 2-1 that evening, securing a Champions League final matchup with Inter Milan.

Declan Rice headed off target after a cross from Jurrien Timber put the French champions under immediate pressure. This sparked a wild five-minute period in which Gianluigi Donnarumma had to make incredible saves to keep out Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli. Arsenal continued to play catch-up after the early goal failed to materialize.

In their last four major cup semi-finals (2020–21 Europa League, 2021–22 League Cup, 2024–25 League Cup, and 2024–25 Champions League), the Gunners have not advanced.

Despite the loss, Arteta praised Arsenal as the best team in the competition and feels his team deserved to advance to the final based on the two legs with them.

“I don’t think there’s been a better team in the competition form what I’ve seen,” Arteta told TNT Sports.

“But we are out. We deserved much more but this competition is about the boxes, the strikers most of the time and the goalkeeper and theirs was the best player in both games.

“I’m so proud of the boys, they deserve lots of credit for what they’re doing and the amount of injuries. We arrived here in the worst state. You have to get here with everyone fit and available with lots of minutes. They had a week. We came here in a different context. That gives me a lot of positivity for the future.”

Over the two legs, Donnarumma made eight saves, and Arsenal created 4.77 goals that should have been scored but only managed to score once due to their poor finishing technique.

Arteta went on: “I’ll make an evaluation once I’m a little more composed, but I got the impression from their bench that we were far superior to them.

“Over the two legs the best player on the pitch was their goalkeeper – he’s made a difference in the tie. We were very close much closer than the results showed but unfortunately we are out. I’m so proud. How we started and handled the pressure – after 20 minutes we should be 3-0 up. But there is something extra in this competition to go your way and it didn’t.

“I’m upset, it has to hurt. If we want to win this competition and we need to realise that. Just understanding that we are out is not the way I look at it.”