Arteta coy on the foothold Arsenal gained to give themselves a chance against PSG

Fireworks filling the air with smoke before kick-off: Picture by @YTJourno

The first 20 minutes of Tuesday night's Champions League semi-final tie were as humbling as it gets for the Gunners.

They were treated to a masterclass by Luis Enrique's sparkling Paris Saint-Germain side, as they turned on the style after plundering an early lead to leave Arsenal floundering.

PSG looked after the ball immaculately but also added pace and daring that left the red shirts starved of the ball and gasping for air.

It looked such a mismatch that a route back into the contest seemed out of the question.

But then came a sea change as Mikel Arteta's men finally found a way to press that impressive Parisian midfield and get a toe hold in the contest.

Ultimately, it did not tip the scales enough to claim parity, but it suggests all may not be lost at 1-0 with the second leg to come in France next week.

Arteta did not want to go into the tactical tweaks but was sufficiently buoyed to insist Arsenal still have a fighting chance of reaching the Champions League final for only a second time.

"We are at half time. I said exactly the same thing after Real Madrid," the Arsenal coach said "We had one issue that we corrected after 15-20 minutes and it turned the game around. It was an issue we had in a specific moment. If you don't have the chance to press them, they can have their midfielders back and you're going to struggle.

"It's something specific but very important [that we changed] especially because of the way in which we play. We corrected it and did much better and we had good chances in one v ones against [keeper] Donnarumma and if we'd scored a goal, it's different [game] but he made a save and we had a disallowed one as well.

"To reach a Champions League final, you have to do something special and we are going to have to do something special in Paris to get there. I don't know the chances [of reaching the final] but you cannot dominate this team {PSG] for 95 minutes. Impossible. They are one of the best. They beat some of the best teams in this country.

"But the performance can be better in Paris and the result significantly different."