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Arteta reacts as Arsenal hold Sporting to seal Champions League semi-final berth
16th April, 2026 06:37 AM
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has expressed immense pride after guiding the Gunners to back-to-back UEFA Champions League semi-finals, acknowledging the scale of the club’s achievement and urging appreciation for the milestone.
Consistency
Having only recently returned to Europe’s top competition after a lengthy absence, Arsenal have rapidly grown into consistent contenders. A disciplined performance over two legs against Sporting CP, including a narrow win away and a composed goalless draw at home, secured their place in the last four for just the fourth time in club history. Notably, half of those appearances have come within the past year.
Reflecting on the moment when Arsenal held Sporting CP to a barren draw at the Emirates on Wednesday night, April 15, 2026, Arteta admitted the full significance may only be understood with time, as the home side progressed with a slim 1-0 aggregate.
“It’s a great night; I’m so proud of everybody at the club,” he said. “Thank you to our supporters for the manner in which they followed the team. It’s the first time we’ve [reached the semi-finals consecutively] in 140 years, so that tells you the difficulty and magnitude of what we’ve done,” Arteta told the club’s website.
He cautioned against underestimating the accomplishment, adding: “I think we don’t realise it now, but we’ll realise it in a few years, so don’t take for granted what we’ve done. It’s extremely difficult to achieve, and it’s never been achieved [by ourselves], so big gratitude to our players and everyone who’s contributed to achieving that,” he added.
Atletico Madrid clash
Despite the success, the Spaniard emphasised that improvement remains necessary, especially ahead of a tough semi-final clash with Atlético Madrid. “We’re not perfect, we want to improve in every area, but we have two magical nights to play against Atletico and we’re certainly going to prepare well for that,” he noted.
Arteta also stressed the importance of staying true to their identity when facing the Spanish side: “We’ll take things from [October’s meeting] and games they have played recently, but we’re going to have to go to Madrid, be ourselves, and compete in the manner we have – and then we’ll have a big chance to win it,” Arteta said.
Looking back at the second leg, he highlighted Arsenal’s defensive strength while acknowledging missed opportunities. “It’s the Champions League – the margins are very small, and when we had the dominance and situations to kill the tie, we didn’t,” he said. “It was always going to be open but it was very controlled – especially in the second half – we didn’t allow any shots for the opposition apart from the last long throw, so it was very solid.”
He concluded by reiterating the need for further growth while appreciating the result: “We need to improve in certain areas, that’s for sure, and we need some players back in order to do that as well, but overall it was a great night.”
Meanwhile, Arsenal will be looking to salvage their season as they aim to win their maiden Champions League title, as well as chasing the elusive Premier League crown.
