Mikel Arteta says Arsenal’s Champions League final place reflects the club’s ambition and alignment after years away from Europe’s biggest stage.
Mikel Arteta says Arsenal’s place in the Champions League final is the result of a long-term rebuild built on ambition, alignment and belief.
Arsenal beat Atletico Madrid 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday night, with Bukayo Saka’s goal securing a 2-1 aggregate victory and sending Arteta’s side into the final for only the second time in the club’s history.
It is also another marker of Arsenal’s rise under Arteta. When he took charge, the club were outside the Champions League picture. They later returned to Europe through the Europa League, rebuilt their domestic level, got back into the Champions League, reached last season’s semi-finals and have now taken the next step into the final.
Asked to put that journey into perspective, Arteta admitted the progress had not been straightforward.
“It’s very tough and difficult,” Arteta said in his post-match press conference. “But again, we’ve been so aligned on the desire and the ambition that we have for the club.
“You have to be some lucky, things have to go your way. We put obviously so much more passion and belief into what we do and today we were rewarded.”
That alignment has been one of the defining themes of Arteta’s time in charge. Arsenal have changed the age profile of the squad, made major recruitment calls, developed a clearer identity and rebuilt the connection with supporters. The result is a team now competing for the Premier League title and preparing for a Champions League final in the same season.
Arteta also reflected on how difficult this position would have been to imagine earlier in his tenure.
“It was difficult to imagine because we were barely even in Europe and we had spent seven years out of the Champions League,” he said.
“It is a very big jump, but everything has been built little by little.”
The Arsenal manager pointed to the backing behind the scenes as a key part of that progress.
“The owners have believed in what we wanted to do, they have given us a lot of support and then we have had the fortune to get it right with the people we have brought in, whether staff or players,” Arteta said.
Arsenal’s win over Atletico was not a free-flowing performance, but it showed the maturity of a side that has grown into the demands of elite European football. Arteta’s team found the decisive moment through Saka, then defended with discipline as Atletico pushed after the break.
That was another sign of progress. Arsenal have had to learn how to win in different ways, and this was a night that required nerve as much as quality.
The final now gives Arteta’s side the chance to turn the project into silverware on the biggest European stage. Whatever happens next, Arsenal’s path back to this point has already changed the direction of the club.
After years away from the competition, they are now one game from winning it.