Mikel Arteta admitted that the Arsenal dressing room is "gutted" after their Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.
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Bayern beat Arsenal 3-2 on aggregateArteta admitted Gunners were not at required levelRevealed what his team were missingWHAT HAPPENED?
Arsenal's hopes of a Champions League triumph were dashed as they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in their quarter-final second leg on Wednesday. The decisive moment came from Joshua Kimmich's header, breaking the deadlock after the sides had drawn 2-2 at the Emirates in the first leg. This defeat marked another chapter in Arsenal's troubled history with Bayern, who have proven to be their nemesis in previous encounters, including knockout exits in 2013, 2014, and 2016, along with a resounding 5-1 defeat in the group stages in 2015.
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Reflecting on the loss, Arteta told TNT Sports: "At the moment it's a gutted dressing room, very disappointed. I cannot find the right words to leave them, I wish I had. We have to go through it. We tried against a team with a lot of experience. Through the tie the margins have been very small. There were moments that we were better, we gave them two goals – that is a big advantage to give away.
"Today you could see that it was a zero margin of error, we made a mistake defensively in the box, big one, and we give away the goal. Now is the moment to stick with the players, because they need our support. They are the ones that have taken us on this journey."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
The loss compounded a difficult week for Arsenal, who had also suffered a setback in the Premier League title race, slipping two points behind Manchester City after a defeat to Aston Villa.
When asked if Arsenal missed a moment of magic against bayern, Arteta added: "Yes. Had to be. A mistake from them or a magic moment, that is what unlocks the tie. We didn't manage to win it at the end and we could have won. At the moment we were better than them and had a lot of moments of dominance. That spark around the box is what you need in these ties to get the victory."
ARSENAL NEED TIME
Despite the disappointment, Arteta defended his team's progress, highlighting their achievement in reaching the quarter-finals after a seven-year absence from Europe's premier club competition. He acknowledged the gap in experience between Arsenal and Bayern but remained optimistic about the future, suggesting that it might take several more years to bridge that divide.
"The club has been without Champions League football for seven years. The first time you want to be in it, then you want to be in the semi-finals and finals. We all want it so badly, but you see in many other clubs it takes six, seven years to get to that stage. But we were very close, that is the reality."