Arteta Praises Raya and Havertz as Resilient Arsenal Extend Impressive European Run
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hailed his side’s resilience and the decisive impact of his substitutes after a dramatic 1-0 victory over Sporting in the Champions League quarter-final first leg in Lisbon.
Speaking after Kai Havertz’s stoppage-time winner, Arteta said: ‘Very happy to win away from home in the quarterfinals of the Champions League against a team that have not lost at home for I don’t know how long. That shows the difficulty of it.’
The Arsenal boss admitted he feared his side might not find a breakthrough.
‘Yes, because when we got into the final third we missed the final bit. We had to be a little bit crisper, faster, more efficient to break them down when they had that block. We had a goal disallowed and there were two or three occasions where we were close but we lacked that final pass. In the end a magic moment from the finishers wins us the game.’
Arteta described Havertz’s late strike as ‘beautiful’ and stressed the importance of contributions from across the squad at this stage of the season.
He also praised goalkeeper David Raya, who made crucial saves to keep Arsenal level before the decisive goal.
‘He had two moments where he made two big saves. And that’s the Champions League, it is always decided in the boxes because there’s so much quality here,’ Arteta said.
On Havertz’s claim that Raya is the best goalkeeper in the world, Arteta added: ‘At the moment he’s phenomenal and extraordinary since he joined us. We are very lucky to have him.’
The victory continues Arsenal’s impressive European record. They are unbeaten in the first leg of their last nine European Cup/Champions League quarter-finals, winning four and drawing five.
The Gunners have lost only two of their last 21 Champions League matches, with 17 wins and two draws, and remain unbeaten this season with 10 wins and one draw.
Against Portuguese opposition, Arsenal have lost just once in their last 12 UEFA matches, while Arteta’s side have kept seven clean sheets in 11 Champions League games this season, underlining the defensive strength behind their European charge.
