Mikel Arteta points to Bayern advantage in Champions League as Arsenal players ‘really gutted’

Mikel Arteta disappointed after Arsenal defeat to Bayern Munich.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta said his players are “really gutted” after their defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-final, and pointed out a key advantage Thomas Tuchel’s team had over his.

Joshua Kimmich’s header just past the hour mark sealed a 1-0 second-leg victory for the German side that saw them advance 3-2 on aggregate.

Arteta said he believes experience was key for Bayern, with his players relative novices in the competition.

“I cannot find the right words to lift them, I wish I had,” Arteta said. “We have to go through it. We tried against a team that has a lot of experience and through the tie I think the margins have been very small.

“There have been moments where we have been better. We gave them two goals, a big advantage to give away, and today you could see it was margin of error zero, we made a mistake defending the goal and we conceded.

“Then it was difficult. We tried in many different ways but it’s difficult. It is the moment to stay next to the players, give them support, because they are the ones who have taken us on this journey.”

Harry Kane savoured the “unbelievable win” for his Bayern side after the England international has endured a difficult first season in Germany.

He’s been in oustanding goalscoring form but Bayern were trounced to the Bundesliga title by Bayer Leverkusen.

He told TNT Sports: “Unbelievable win. It’s been a tough season for us. We’ve had to fight and really grind at times, and today was that.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game. We knew at home we could make the difference with our fans there. It was what we expected – a tough game, a tight game. It was a great goal from Josh to make the difference for us and then it was about defending and keeping that clean sheet.

“To reach the semi-final is a great achievement for us and we can enjoy this one.”