Mikel Arteta believes Liverpool benefited from 'a bit of luck' in securing a Wembley final – as he lifted the lid on Arsenal’s selection nightmare.
Diogo Jota scored in each half as the Reds earned a 2-0 win at the Emirates in their Carabao Cup semi-final second leg on Thursday to progress by the same score on aggregate.
Liverpool will now face Chelsea in the final on February 27 as they aim to win the competition for a record ninth time.
And Arteta was left to rue a missed opportunity for his team, who ended the game with 10 men after substitute Thomas Partey – who only arrived in London earlier in the day from the Africa Cup of Nations – was sent off late on for two bookable offences.
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“I’m disappointed because when you have the final one game away, you have that level of excitement and you are really looking forward to it,” said the Arsenal boss.
“We did everything we could to put a competitive team out, and we had our moments in the game against a top side, in the first half certainly.
“We had chances and hit the bar, and in the second half at the beginning the same thing, but you have to score.
“When that happens, that’s the difference. The first time they got beyond the halfway line they scored a goal with a bit of luck and that changes the tie.
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“The second goal, we gave the ball away in a dangerous area and when they can attack your space between full-back and centre-back with one pass, that’s extremely dangerous because they have the quality to finish the game off.”
Arteta had raised eyebrows by selecting a strong starting line-up just four days after Arsenal’s Premier League trip to neighbours Tottenham Hotspur had been postponed due to lack of available players.
But the Gunners boss said: “I’m extremely proud how our supporters have tried to help the team, the momentum we have created.
“I know what the players have done to play tonight. Five or six of them haven’t had any training sessions, they were still willing to compete, and the way they competed against this team, in my opinion it is remarkable.”
