London
11 °C
Manchester
12 °C
Glasgow
9 °C
Dublin
10 °C
Belfast
Washington
Denver
Atlanta
Dallas
Houston Texas
26 °C
New Orleans
El Paso
26 °C
Phoenix
Los Angeles
18 °C
25 °C
10 °C
20 °C
'It's only half-time': Defiant Raya says Arsenal can overturn PSG deficit / Photo: Adrian Dennis - AFP
'It's only half-time': Defiant Raya says Arsenal can overturn PSG deficit
David Raya insists Arsenal can still reach the Champions League final despite suffering a 1-0 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-final first leg on Tuesday.
Mikel Arteta's side will head to Paris as underdogs after Ousmane Dembele grabbed PSG's winner in the fourth minute at the Emirates Stadium.
But PSG's first half dominance failed to produced more goals, while Goncalo Ramos and Bradley Barcola wasted two late chances to increase their lead.
The French champions also needed Gianluigi Donnarumma to preserve their lead with fine saves from Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard.
Arsenal goalkeeper Raya took heart from their battling performance as he looked ahead to the second leg at the Parc des Princes on May 7.
"They started quick with a goal and they dominated the first 15 or 20 minutes but after that we dominated most of the game, created the chances. Donnarumma made some good saves," Raya said.
"It's only half-time, we take positives. They are a top team but credit to the players for the effort. We could have won the game.
"We know they keep possession a lot and are good at that. They had that chance and put it in the net. We had chances to score but we didn't manage to."
Arsenal failed to score in a home Champions League game for the first time since a 2-0 defeat to Barcelona in the last 16 in 2016.
It was also their first defeat at the Emirates in 18 European matches.
But the north Londoners will have Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey back from suspension for the second leg, which will allow Declan Rice to play a more attacking role.
Raya is convinced Arsenal, who knocked out holders Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, can defy the odds again as they bid to reach their second Champions League final and win the tournament for the first time.
"We showed from the 25th minute of the first half that we can win against any team. We have showed in the season we can win away games too, so we'll go to Paris next week trying to win," he said.
"We have to approach the game the same way. We played well, we put them on the back foot and hurt them. Let's go next week in Paris."
W.Richard--SMC
