Arteta Urges Arsenal To Change History With A Champions League Title

Mikel Arteta wants Arsenal to win the Champions League to make history (Instagram/@arsenal).

JAKARTA - Mikel Arteta said he wanted to change the club's history after admitting that Arsenal's continued failure to win the Champions League was a pressure he and his players had to overcome.

The Gunners started their 2025/2026 Champions League journey against Athletic Club in Bilbao on Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at 23.45 WIB.

Arsenal, 13 times Premier League champion, is arguably the largest club to have never won the Champions League. So far it has only reached one final - lost to Barcelona in 2006 - and three semifinals in the previous 23 seasons in the European main club tournament since 1971/1972.

Arteta's side were defeated by defending champions Paris Saint-Germain in the semifinals last season. The Arsenal coach said after the second leg that his team was the best in the tournament.

However, with their England rivals Liverpool (6), Manchester United (3), Chelsea and Nottingham Forest (2), Aston Villa (1), and Manchester City (1), all of them have won the tournament, Arteta said it was time for Arsenal to carve their names in the trophy.

"It shows, with our long history, how difficult it is because we haven't won it. That's the opportunity."

"That's how I see it, but pressure is an opportunity that drives energy and the desire to get better every day."

"Every decision must be based on those standards and expectations. So, let's give our best chance to try to do it."

"Large clubs (who have won), they tried seven, eight, nine times, and probably won twice."

"So, in this tournament, failure will be much more frequent than success. That's how it is. That's the history of our club and that's what we want to change," Arteta said when asked about Arsenal's failure to win the Champions League.

Arsenal will play without Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz, Ben White, and Gabriel Jesus who were injured against Athletic Club at the Estadio San Mates.

However, despite the list of injuries, Arteta is confident and passionate about the prospect of starting the struggle in the Champions League.

"I'm really excited to start again from scratch in a beautiful place and a stadium that's going to be something special."

"We're looking forward to it. I'm so excited to step step by step and start gaining momentum and start winning some wins."

"We all know that this will be a very long journey. The difference in the score in this tournament is very thin and you have to be in the best condition if you want to give the best chance for yourself."

"We are good enough to be able to compete with any opponent. Most importantly, you have to have everything that goes the way you want."

"You have to have a complete squad when facing the most crucial moments of the season. When the ball has to be fed at the right time or with the right decision, it must be what you want because the margin is very thin," said Arteta.

Arsenal's 1-3 Aggregate defeat in last season's Champions League semi-final came as they played brilliantly in Paris, giving the Gunners hope to reach the final after a 0-1 loss in the first leg.

Arteta admits that defeat at the Parc des Princes is still painful as Arsenal prepare to start this new season.

"We were so unlucky in the semifinals for not qualifying. At that point, you feel lost and understand what you need to do to put yourself back in a position to do it. It gave us confidence that the team could go far."

"You take a lot of lessons from him. It hurts because it's not just what we feel."

"I think the expectations we created and the real belief we have in the club and the team, that we can go far, because we show very high consistency and quality throughout the tournament and learn from it," he said.