Rio Ferdinand has backed Arsenal to recover from their Champions League final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain and continue ‘fighting for the biggest honours on the planet’ over the coming seasons.
After three successive runners-up finishes in the Premier League, Arsenal managed to get over the line to bring their painful 22-year wait for top-flight glory to an end earlier this month. But it was not to be for the Gunners in the Champions League this weekend, with PSG prevailing on penalties to secure the title for a second time in as many seasons.
The newly crowned English champions got off to a dream start at Budapest’s Puskas Arena as Kai Havertz lashed a brilliant strike beyond Matvey Safonov to send the club’s travelling support into raptures. The holders fought back and were rewarded for their efforts in the 65th minute, though, after Cristhian Mosquera brought down Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, with Ousmane Dembele making no mistake to make it all square with the resulting spot-kick.
While Nuno Mendes was denied by David Raya in a nerve-jangling shootout, Eberechi Eze struck wide from 12 yards before Gabriel fired over with a wild effort to ensure Luis Enrique’s men came away victorious. However, Arsenal’s crushing setback in Hungary did not stop fans from flocking to the streets of north London in huge numbers as Martin Odegaard and Co celebrated their Premier League triumph during a jubilant open-top bus parade this afternoon.
Facing the media shortly after Arsenal’s loss to PSG, a visibly dejected Arteta congratulated PSG, hailing the French giants as ‘the best team in the world’. ‘First of all I will take a few days with my family and then we will start the process to review what we’ve done,’ the Arsenal head coach told reporters at his post-match press conference. ‘We will start to make some very important decisions if we want to reach another level. And we’re going to have to show that ambition because we are more than capable of doing it, but it’s going to demand to be very, very ambitious, very fast and very smart. I want to congratulate PSG, Luis Enrique in particular, because they are, in my opinion, the best team in the world. What they are able to do with the ball, with individual actions, I haven’t seen it, and it’s not the plan to play in certain areas when you don’t have the ball, but they force you to do that. So, even more credit to the players.’
This summer, Arsenal’s squad will no doubt be looking to learn from the lessons of their defeat to PSG and take inspiration from the many positives that came out of their long-awaited Premier League triumph. According to former Manchester United defender Ferdinand, Arteta’s men deserve great ‘credit’ for the progress they have made both domestically and in Europe.
‘You’ve got to reflect and look at this. Yes, there’s disappointment and yes, it’s hard to take on the night, to lose on penalties, it’s difficult,’ he said on his Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube channel. ‘But you know what? The bigger picture is you’ve won the Premier League. What an achievement that is, 22 years and you’ve got over that hurdle. This is a new era now, this is a new team, they’re going to write their own history in the club’s history and I think this is a period of time now, the next three years at least, I think you’re going to be fighting for the biggest honours on the planet. Yes, it’s a tough one to take but go back to London and celebrate that Premier League with your fans.’
Having come out second best in two Champions League finals, Ferdinand knows it may be ‘difficult’ for Arsenal players to feel anything other than disappointment over the coming days. However, the ex-England international urged the Gunners to look at the bigger picture considering how far they have come since Arteta took charge back in 2019.
He added: ‘One thing I would say, I played in two finals where we were beat by Barcelona, 2009 and 2011. We lost the two finals but we won the Premier League both times, and it was the two worst summers that I’ve had probably in football in that sense. I know it’s difficult and the players are going to feel it, but I really, really stress to the players: look at the bigger picture, it’s a different type of team, a different era anyway. But you guys are onto something here and I really do think you guys have got something to build on here, so be happy… I know it’s going to be difficult and you can be upset, but just think of the bigger picture, get a few beers down you and enjoy that parade. Well done to Arsenal. You were unlucky tonight but bigger-picture thinking, well done for the season that they’ve had.’
