Arsenal can take Champions League confidence into Premier League, says Arteta

Arsenal are determined to take the confidence from their 7-1 hammering of PSV Eindhoven in the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie on the road into their Premier League campaign according to head coach Mikel Arteta.

The victory was Arsenal’s biggest ever away from home in Europe, while they also became the first team to score seven in an away knockout game in European competition.

The lead puts them in a near unassailable position in the tie and they look destined to meet either Atletico Madrid or Real Madrid in the quarter-final. It is, according to Arteta, a boost for the side who have fallen 13 points behind Liverpool in the Premier League title race.

“It obviously gives us a lot of joy, confidence and belief and then in football, it’s not what we did three days ago, or today, it’s about what we’re going to do tomorrow, or at Old Trafford, how we behave and able to win again,” he told reporters.

“Enjoy tonight because it was a very impressive performance, an unbelievable score, so we deserve that, and now take that, and keep improving as a team.

“It’s something that hasn’t been done so it’s great to be a part of that [on achieving their biggest away win in the Champions League], but as a team we want to achieve many other things that are far more important than that.”

7 – Arsenal are the first team in UEFA Champions League history to score 7+ goals away from home in a knockout stage match. Narrative. #PSVARS pic.twitter.com/bRoMGxhoIf

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 4, 2025

Arteta also recognised the performance of 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, who scored his eighth goal of the season in all competitions.

“I don’t think that he needs any pushing! You see him every time he has the ball what the intention is, so if he comes, he comes, and it’s great and really impressive again the way he behaved, the way he played tonight,” Arteta added.

The Gunners travel to Manchester United next in the Premier League on Sunday.