Arteta admits PSG final heartbreak still haunts him ahead of Bayern test

Mikel Arteta has admitted he has been unable to shake the heartbreak of Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, saying the memory of last May’s penalty shootout loss still burns as his side prepare to face Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena.

“I tried, but I haven’t managed to,” Arteta said when asked whether he had put the defeat behind him. “I tried for many weeks during the summer, but when I see the ball, the scenes, I hear the music, I want it so badly. We know that we have to go step by step, but I think that fire is within the team and all of us individually. We know what we had to go through — not being champions of Europe by a penalty. So, let’s try again.”

The trip to Munich represents Arsenal’s most demanding fixture since that final, and carries added significance given their history with the Bundesliga club. Arsenal were knocked out by Bayern over two legs in the 2024 quarter-finals before reversing the dynamic last season, defeating them 3-1 during the league phase en route to the final.

Despite winning 10 of their 11 matches across all competitions this season, Arsenal have attracted criticism over their tactical approach. Arteta was dismissive of the narrative. “We have lost one game in 11 this season and if you call that boring or irritating, I don’t know what to say,” he said. “We enjoy playing football. We enjoy going out there every single day to win football matches and that’s the most important thing.”

The manager’s progression in Europe has been incremental but consistent — quarter-finals, then semi-finals, then the final itself in successive campaigns — and he made clear his appetite for Wednesday’s fixture. “This is the stage, this is the kind of team, this is the kind of coach, this is the kind of club, the stadium that you want to be involved in,” he said. “We have prepared the game with loads of enthusiasm. I’m really thrilled to come here and play.”

Arteta may face an unfamiliar counterpart on the touchline, however. Bayern head coach Vincent Kompany is a doubt due to illness, with assistant Aaron Danks prepared to take charge if needed. Arteta, who worked alongside Kompany at Manchester City, said he hoped his former colleague would recover in time. “I hope that he gets soon better. I hope that he’s there tomorrow because it will be very good for the game that his presence is there. A huge admirer of him — one, as a person, because I got to know him and I worked with him for a few years, and then what he has done as a coach.”