Arsenal UCL semi-final: The result does not tell the whole story of Arteta's elite transformation

Mikel Arteta continues to face a level of scrutiny that feels disproportionate to both his experience and his achievements.

In just his sixth season as a manager — and only his second in the Champions League — he has taken Arsenal to the final four of Europe’s most prestigious competition while keeping them in contention for a second straight Premier League title.

Yet the conversation around him often seems to fixate more on what he has not won than what he has built.

There is a curious double standard at play. Other young managers, some with considerably less on-pitch success, are hailed for their promise or tactical innovation. Arteta, by contrast, is routinely judged by the harshest of elite standards.

But the reality is that few coaches of his age or tenure are consistently competing at the level he has reached. Knocking out Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate is no fluke. It is the kind of result that only Europe’s very best are capable of producing.

The Gunners have not just rubbed shoulders with top-tier opposition — they have outplayed them. In domestic competition, they thrashed Manchester City 5-1 in the home leg and drew 2-2 away, recording the highest aggregate score against the defending champions in what has been a difficult season for Pep Guardiola’s side.

Against Paris Saint-Germain, the eventual semi-final exit came despite Arsenal winning the tie on expected goals, creating the better chances and falling short only due to the fine margins that define this stage of the competition.

That they reached this point while navigating a campaign plagued by injuries and refereeing controversies only reinforces how well-drilled and mentally robust Arteta’s side have become.

Arsenal arrived in Paris with only one recognised striker in the squad — academy graduate Nathan Butler-Oyedeji, who is yet to score a senior goal. Despite that, they showed enough ambition and structure to compete against one of Europe’s most dangerous attacks.

It is easy to point to the absence of silverware as a mark against Arteta. But to do so is to ignore the progress that underpins everything he is building.

He inherited a mid-table side and has transformed them into a genuine force, one that now expects to challenge for trophies rather than merely dream of them.

This season should not be framed as another near miss. It should be seen as confirmation that Arsenal are now part of the elite conversation in Europe.

With smarter investment in the summer — especially in the final third — there is every reason to believe they can take the final step. Arteta has laid the foundations and brought the club back to relevance at the highest level.

That deserves more than just faint praise. It deserves real recognition.

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