Mikel Arteta claimed Arsenal were "100 per cent" the best team in the Champions League this season and deserved to beat Paris Saint-Germain - but Arsene Wenger did not agree
Arsene Wenger has shot down Mikel Arteta's assertion that his side were the better team over the two legs against Paris Saint-Germain. Arsenal were knocked out of the Champions League in the semi-final 3-1 on aggregate, with PSG going through to face Inter Milan in the final later this month.
The Gunners arrived in Paris with a 1-0 deficit from the first leg and came out of the blocks fast, but were denied by Gianluigi Donnarumma. The PSG keeper made stunning saves from Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard before Fabian Ruiz smashed past David Raya in the 27th minute.
Donnarumma kept out a Bukayo Saka curler before Raya saved a penalty from Vitinha to keep Arsenal's hopes alive. They appeared extinguished when Achraf Hakimi found the bottom corner, only for Saka to give the away fans something to cheer about when he slotted in.
Saka put a low cross over the bar in Arsenal's only other major chance and PSG held on relatively comfortably to knock out a third English side. Arteta turned heads after the match by claiming his side were "100 per cent" the best team in the competition and better than PSG over the two legs.
"First congratulations to PSG for reaching the final. The assessment I will make when I am a little cooler," he added. "When you look at the two games their best player on the pitch has been the goalkeeper, he has been the difference for them in the tie. We were very close, much closer than the result showed but unfortunately we are out. I am very proud of the players.
"After 20 minutes it should have been 3-0. There is something extra you need to go your way in the competition and it didn't. We were very close and for long periods of both games we were much better than them but we are not there and that has to hurt.
"If we want to win this competition we have to realise that. There are certain things that are on us. You shouldn't just be understanding we are out. That is not the way I look at it.
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"100%, I don't think there's been a better team [than Arsenal] in the competition from what I have seen, but we are out. This competition is about the boxes and in both boxes are the strikers and the goalkeepers and there's was the best in both games."
However, former Arsenal boss Wenger had a different take. Speaking on beIN SPORTS, he said: "I would say tonight that we've seen a different Paris Saint-Germain - not guided by possession and brilliant football, but guided by refusing to concede goals and taking advantage on the counter-attack and on set pieces is what gave them success tonight. I would say that mentally they were strong as well. When they missed a penalty, they did hang in there.
"On the other hand, with Arsenal, we saw the recurrence of being unable to score goals... Overall, in the two games, I would say they were better than Arsenal, had more chances and were never really in danger, so congratulations to Paris Saint-Germain.
"I said a long time ago that Paris Saint-Germain will not be far away from winning the Champions League and let's not forget: they are maybe the only team who can have the perfect season because they can win the Champions League, win the double in France and the Club World Cup. That would be an extraordinary success for Luis Enrique."