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Mikel Arteta has congratulated Tottenham Hotspur on their Europa League triumph - but sidestepped questions about whether their season has been more successful than Arsenal’s.
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Spurs lifted the trophy on Wednesday night with a 1-0 win over Manchester United in Bilbao, ending a 17-year wait for major silverware and claiming their first European title since 1984.
Speaking on Thursday, Arteta said: “Just congratulate them. I think they are champions, and when you get to that, you have to do a lot of things right. They have gone through a season with a lot of obstacles and difficulties, and they’ve managed to reach a beautiful moment.
“You have to congratulate them. This is sport, and I’m sure they did everything they could to achieve it.”
Despite their European success, Spurs have endured a woeful Premier League campaign. With one game left to play, they sit 17th in the table and have lost a club-record 21 league matches this season.
Arsenal, by contrast, are second in the Premier League and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League but will finish the season without a trophy. Their last major honour came in 2020, when they won the FA Cup under Arteta.
When asked directly whether Arsenal or Tottenham have had the better season, Arteta declined to comment. He instead said: “I don’t like to compare with other teams. I need to analyse my team. That’s my job.”