Arsenal has “great enthusiasm” for ominous PSG challenges in Champions League semifinals
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal was “extremely enthusiastic” and, despite entering their second leg of the Champions League semi-finals, trailed Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 overall.
The Gunners finished second in the first leg at the Emirates Stadium, trailing Ousmane Dembele in the fourth minute to strike.
For Arsenal, Bradley Barcola and Goncalo Ramos are late, which could be worse.
But the task facing Arteta's men in Parc des Princes remains ominous on Wednesday.
Indeed, only two teams made it to the Champions League finals and thus lost the first leg of the semi-finals at home. Ajax was the first game against Panathinaikos in 1995-96, with Tottenham making the incredible last game against Ajax in 2018-19.
However, Arteta insists that Arsenal is challenging rivals who are trying to follow suit in North London to be the third team to achieve the feat.
Asked about your belief in the camp, Arteta said: “Great enthusiasm, great energy.”
“We have won from being the Champions League semifinal, and our victory is not better than that in one of the most beautiful cities in the world against great opponents.
Paris binding pic.twitter.com/ZO41EZQO5V
– Arsenal (@arsenal) May 6, 2025
“We’re making history here and tomorrow we’re going to have a great chance. We’ve brought a result that makes us so clear about what we have to do. A lot of things learned from the first round, and a small margin between the two teams.
“In my opinion, the result should be very different from that. So tomorrow, another chance to prove that and win the right to the final.”
“To win the Champions League final, you have to do something great throughout the game.
“We've done a lot of great things, but tomorrow in Paris, opposing this team is the moment to do that. We're going to improve the squad and start making history. This is our chance to move forward.”
Arteta revealed that defender Jurrien Timber will evaluate his fitness after a Premier League defeat last Saturday to beat Bournemouth.
Timber was trained on Tuesday, while guard Riccardo Calafiori was trained, who has been injured in international duties since March due to a knee injury.
Asked about the availability of Calafioli, Arteta said: “He traveled, he was fit and he was ready for the game when we needed it. It was obviously good news.”
