Mikel Arteta has called on Arsenal supporters to savour the club’s position rather than pick apart performances, after his side reached the Champions League semifinals with a tense, goalless draw against Sporting CP.

The stalemate at the Emirates was enough to secure a 1-0 aggregate victory and a last-four showdown with Atlético Madrid. It also marked the first time in Arsenal’s history that they have reached back-to-back semifinals in Europe’s elite competition, underlining the scale of the team’s progress.

Yet the manner of the display, with Arsenal registering only one shot on target and leaning heavily on defensive resilience, fuelled familiar doubts about their attacking fluency on the biggest stage. Those concerns come despite the club sitting top of the Premier League and still chasing a first league title in more than two decades.

Arteta, however, believes the wider narrative around his team has become skewed. Drawing on the Amazon “All or Nothing” documentary that chronicled Arsenal’s 2021-22 campaign, he suggested that if cameras had been rolling over the past two days, the external reaction would make it seem as if the club were in crisis rather than competing at the summit of English and European football.

He argued that if supporters later watched such a series, they might assume Arsenal were battling relegation, not preparing for a Champions League semifinal while leading the domestic table. For the manager, that disconnect is a sign that expectations have shifted faster than appreciation.

Arteta urged fans to recognise the scale of the journey: a team that has not lifted the Premier League trophy in 22 years and has never won the Champions League is now consistently deep in both competitions. He framed the current moment as one to be relished, not relentlessly scrutinised.

The Spaniard also highlighted the commitment within his squad, revealing that midfielder Declan Rice played the full match against Sporting despite being “shattered” and missing training the previous day through illness. Arteta praised Rice’s willingness to push through and said every player was “putting everything through the line” to keep Arsenal’s season on track.

As the club heads into a decisive stretch, with a daunting league trip to Manchester City looming, Arteta’s message is clear: this is a time for unity and enjoyment, not anxiety and complaint.