Mikel Merino has vowed Arsenal’s young squad will learn from being eliminated in the Champions League semi-finals and is convinced they will “be back stronger” next season.
Paris Saint-Germain booked their place in the final against Inter with a 2-1 win in the second leg, meaning Arsenal will end another campaign without a trophy. They saw off PSV and Real Madrid to reach the last four in the Champions League for the first time since 2009, having been knocked out by Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals last year.
“It’s really disappointing because of the mentality of this club, of this squad, is always to try to win big things,” Merino said. “This season is going to be a huge learning curve for us because we have such a young squad, not so much experience in these situations. But having played in the Bernabéu, having played against PSG, it’s going to be a huge learning point for the future. We will be back stronger, we will be back more ready.”
Merino said when asked whether you learn more from setbacks and defeats: “That’s completely true; you have to lose first to win later and those experiences are really, really helpful. In the future we will remember these kind of games and remember what is needed to win against top clubs, to win in games you will face in the Champions League and also in the Premier League. So the things someone may think of a setback, we have to look at them as something to learn.”
The Spain midfielder has been playing as a makeshift striker owing to injuries, although Mikel Arteta has hinted that Kai Havertz could return from a hamstring injury before the end of the season. Arsenal need seven points from their last three Premier League matches, starting at the champions, Liverpool, on Sunday, to be confirmed as runners-up for a third successive season and Merino said it was important to end on a positive note.
“Nobody has the feeling this season is over,” he said. “We know we have big things ahead of us. We need to show to everybody we are still hungry for more. We have to finish the season on a high to go to the summer with a feeling that we can come back stronger.”
