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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta pinpointed a big mistake that they made in their 1-0 loss to German giants Bayern Munich in the second leg of their Champions League quarterfinal tie on Wednesday (April 17).
The tie was level at 2-2 after the first leg last week at the Emirates Stadium, with goals from Leandro Trossard, Bukayo Saka, Serge Gnabry, and Harry Kane.
In the reverse fixture, the winning moment came from Bayern stalwart Joshua Kimmich. He nodded in a cross from Raphael Guerreiro in the 63rd minute to secure the Bavarians' progress into the semifinals.
Arsenal were looking to make their first Champions League semifinal since 2009, but their defensive errors cost them dearly, as pointed out by Arteta in his post-match presser.
He said:
“At the moment it is a gutted dressing room. I cannot find the right words to lift them... We tried against a team with a lot of experience... In moments we have been better but we gave them two goals. That’s a big advantage to give away. Today you could see the margin of error was zero. We made a mistake defending the box, a big one, and we conceded a goal."
The defeat to Bayern only compounds the Gunners' woes, as they exit the Champions League after having fallen off the top of the Premier League earlier this week.
They fell to an uninspiring 2-0 defeat at home to UCL hopefuls Aston Villa, which has them sitting two points behind leaders Manchester City with six league games to go.
Arsenal now have to prepare themselves for a tricky run-in of Premier League fixtures, including Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur. Arteta will be hoping that the Gunners can find another gear if they are to have any chance at the league title.
"What we still have to play for is beautiful" - Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta after loss to Bayern Munich
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expressed optimism even after his side's crushing 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich which eliminated them from the UEFA Champions League.
He believed that the Gunners' inexperience compared to their much more prestigious German opponents showed. That, according to him, might have been the deciding factor in the tie. He said:
“We haven’t played this competition for seven years and we haven’t been in this stage for 14 years. There’s a reason for it... I think we have the capacity and the quality to be in the semi-final because the margins are very small. Those margins are coming from something else that maybe we don’t have yet. We have to learn it."
Arteta then called for the fans' support to motivate the players in the Premier League title race, which is still wide open with six games to go.
He added:
"I can guarantee you by tomorrow we’re fully focused on Wolves and everybody is lifted. What we still have to play for is beautiful... It’s easy to be behind them and praise the players and talk nice things when we win 10 in a row and one draw. The moment is now to be behind them and be next to them.”
Next up, Arsenal take on Wolverhampton Wanderers in a crucial Premier League fixture at the Molineux on Saturday, April 20.
