Football

Mikel Arteta reveals importance of Arsenal ending 14-year Champions League quarter-final drought

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Mar 13, 2024 / 2190 Views

Mikel Arteta has stressed the importance of Arsenal qualifying for the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after their dramatic round of 16 win over Porto.

The Gunners went into their second leg clash with Porto trailing 1-0 thanks to wonderful last-minute goal scored Galeno at Estadio do Dragao in late February, but managed to claw their way back into the tie via a Leandro Trossard strike on the stroke of half-time at the Emirates Stadium.

Trossard's goal would result in the second leg going to extra time and eventually penalties, with David Raya's heroics in goal sealing the win for Arsenal.

The victory ensured that Arsenal qualified for the quarter-finals of Europe's elite comPetition for the first time in 14 years, having been knocked out of the comPetition in the round of 16 in each of their last seven attempts - their most recent defeat coming in 2017.

The hero on the night / Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/GettyImages

Speaking to the press after the win, manager Arteta was keen to stress the importance of finally breaking the club's quarter-final duck.

"Magic, what we expected, a really tough opponent, really well organised, very difficult to generate constant momentum in the game in the way they play and that's credit to them," said Arteta of the win.

"For them to do it when the club hasn't managed to do it for 14 years, I tell you it will be a boost. The margins are so small. You find a way to do it again. I see how much they want it, how much they try and they are able to sacrifice anything to win. When you play like this at the end good things are going to come your way.

"It's another big step, especially as a club. For seven years we haven't been in this comPetition and for 14 years we haven't got this far. That tells you the difficulty of it. We want more and we're going to go for it that's for sure.

"Having experience, I haven't done it before as you said. It's the first time I've done anything in the Champions League, and to try to learn every single day, you get advice. That's why you have great coaches around you, great people as well to help you and make you better."