Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says the pain of last season’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain remains with him and continues to motivate him.
PSG edged Arsenal 4-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, denying the Gunners the European title.
Arsenal made a fast start, taking the lead through Kai Havertz in the sixth minute, but later struggled to maintain control as PSG dominated possession.
Ousmane Dembélé levelled from the penalty spot in the 65th minute, before neither side could find a winner during extra time.
The contest was decided by penalties, with Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhães missing for Arsenal. Gabriel’s decisive miss over the crossbar handed Luis Enrique’s PSG successive Champions League titles.
The defeat came just a week after Arsenal had been crowned Premier League champions.
For Arteta and his squad, it was a bitter conclusion to a European campaign in which they went unbeaten in normal time across all 15 matches and spent just 42 minutes and 48 seconds behind.
“I still have the scar, like Arsene [Wenger] says. I still have that poison in my veins,” Arteta said.
“It has to stay there because that’s when you learn and that probably is going to be a massive driver for me and everybody.”
