Mikel Merino has sent a heartfelt message to the Arsenal fans following their Champions League semi-final exit. Mikel Arteta's side lost 2-1 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate against Paris Saint-Germain to bow out of the competition and deny them the chance of trying to win the competition for the first time.
Looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit from the first leg in north London, the Gunners started on the front foot at the Parc des Princes and could have, if not should have, levelled the tie. Gianluigi Donnarumma was in fine form and made a couple of world-class saves from Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard to prevent them from scoring.
And Arsenal were made to pay for missing chances, as PSG went 1-0 in front on the night and 3-1 ahead on aggregate, as Fabian Ruiz fired home midway through the second-half.
It went from bad to worse for the Gunners after the interval, however, as Achraf Hakimi put PSG three in front in the 72nd minute. Although Bukayo Saka pulled one back for Arsenal late on, it proved to be too little too late as Arteta's men crashed out of the Champions League at the last four stage.
After the match, Arsenal midfielder Merino issued a message to the supporters and thanked them for their support throughout the Champions League campaign. He said on Instagram: "We can only say THANK YOU.
"For being with us in this beautiful trip, from start to finish. It doesn't end the way we’d have wanted to, but there is no doubt that we left it all out there. On one hand, feeling disappointed.
"On the other, confident that this experience will help us when we get there in future seasons. Let’s stick together and finish the season in the best way! COYG," alongside a love heart emoji and flexed biceps emoji.
Despite losing the tie 3-1, Arteta felt that Arsenal were the better team. He told TNT Sports: "First of all, I am going to congratulate PSG for reaching the final. I'll make the judgement when I am a little bit cooler, but the feedback what I got from the bench was that we were much better than them.
"If you look at the two games, the best player on the pitch has been the goalkeeper (Donnarumma). He's made a difference for them in the tie and I think we were very close, much closer than the result showed.
"I am very proud of the players, what we did today, how we started, how we handled the pressure. After 20 minutes it should have been 3-0, but there is something extraordinary in the competition to go your way and it didn't."
Declan Rice added: "It's gutting. Such a dominant start. If you score one of them chances in the first 15-20 minutes, the game turns on its head. Two mistakes from us, two goals from them, and with the chances we missed, it felt like it wasn't meant to be. We gave everything. Donnarumma has been unbelievable, and it's small margins."