Mikel Arteta has said Arsenal need to be ready to give their life to reach the Champions League final.
Arsenal face Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of their semifinal on Wednesday where they will look to overturn a 1-0 deficit and reach only the second Champions League final in their history.
In an exclusive interview to ESPN, Arteta spoke of his anticipation in the leadup to the clash at Parc des Princes.
“Excitement, goosebumps, wanting the day to arrive, [the feeling] of being very prepared, very convinced and knowing that the opportunity is to play in a Champions [League] final,” he said
“And when you get to that point, you have to give your life for it.”
The north London side will be boosted by the return of midfielder Thomas Partey for the trip to Paris after he missed the first leg through suspension. However, they remain without a host of their first-team stars due to long-term injuries.
Such was the strain on resoruces for the first leg, that Arteta had to name four academy players on the bench who between them have one Premier League appearance this season.
When asked about his frustrations around having a depleted squad, Arteta said: “Look, when I was going through the tunnel, I see [Takehiro] Tomiyasu out, [Riccardo] Calafiori out, Gabriel Magalhães out, Kai Havertz out, Gabriel Jesus out, Thomas Partey out, Jorginho out. Starters!
“And I see the team compete and I get goosebumps. Because we have a lot of merit and yet the game was by very, very, very small margins that weren’t on our side that day. That’s why I’m very optimistic.”
