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Mikel Arteta has admitted Arsenal’s season has been “unacceptable” by their own high standards.

In a rallying cry ahead of their 'mission impossible' Champions League last-16 second-leg trip to Bayern Munich, and with a place in the Premier League’s top four to fight for, Arteta insists there is still time for the Gunners to turn their fortunes around.

Arteta claims Arsenal can show their never-say-die spirit against Bayern and believes a top four finish is still within their grasp after a “crazy” roller-coaster season.

And just as important, Arteta is convinced the Gunners are not far away from a new era of success.

“After winning, it’s hard to go to not winning,” said Arteta. “There’s only a few trophies: after the championship, the FA Cup, the Champions League. There are so many clubs, so much competition, it’s tough.

“But with 10 games to go it’s an impossible catch and that, for me, is not acceptable.

“We can’t be in that position, because we have the best basic structure I’ve ever seen at a football club, great philosophy, good players, we’ve got financial backing to do whatever we want, unbelievable crowds for the stadium. Let’s go for it!”

First up, is the return leg with Bayern.

Arsenal fly to Munich on Tuesday, needing a huge turnaround to reach the quarter-finals after losing the first leg 3-1 and yet Arteta says they can emulate last season’s memorable showdown with AC Milan.

“It will be very tough, they were very good in the first leg and it will be even harder away from home,” said Arteta, who recalled Arsenal going close to completing an incredible comeback against Milan last season at this same stage, after being beaten 4-0 in the first leg in the San Siro.

“The psychological thing is very important. We had a great example of how that can happen last year against Milan.

“After a very disappointing result in the first leg, we scored a goal, score another one and it’s a completely different game. We have to get ourselves in that position again.

“We have that spirit. We’ve have disappointments in the past few years. To see the club and the supporters, they’ve been through a difficult period over the last seven or eight years, because it’s a very competitive club and everyone wants to see the club at the top.

“To see the line between being good and bad is really thin. It’s not easy for anyone, not the manager, the players or the staff.

“We have a very good team but we are missing that little thing which makes a difference and that’s where we need to find the key.”

(Image: Laurence Griffiths)

Arteta is Arsenal’s vice-captain, one of the most influential players and is offering straight talking when it comes to his assessment of the campaign so far. He accepts the criticism but also made it clear that no-one is hurting more than the players.

They are 24 points behind Premier League leaders Manchester United, five points off fourth place and a magical Champions League spot but there has been an unfamiliar lack of consistency in Arsenal’s results this season.

“Criticism is part of being at a club like Arsenal,” said Arteta. “You always have to win and when you’re not winning you have to be prepared for that. It’s part of your job.

“We want to win silverware a lot. That’s why the FA Cup exit (to Blackburn) was crazy. It was hard to get out of my head. Because the way we threw it away was unbelievable. And then you see the draw.

“It’s very frustrating. It was a very straight line from that game to being there in the final. To throw it away like that is unacceptable.

(Image: Clive Brunskill)

“I’d like to put a note at the end of the season to say it’s been a weird season. With big disappointments. We have played some fantastic games but lost points in games where we didn’t have to.

“The gap is not that big. We have not been battered this season. We’ve not had many occasions where we’ve said, ‘They are much better than Arsenal.’

"Maybe the first half at Man United and for 25 minutes against Bayern Munich in the first half when they looked really comfortable.

“Apart from that, I haven’t felt like I have had to say, ‘Wow, they are much better than us.’ For me, that’s the most frustrating thing.”

There are two very clear targets left for Arteta this season: 1) To help Arsenal do themselves proud and try to pull off a miracle in Munich, and 2) To chase down a top four place. After hauling back an even bigger points deficit last season, he is convinced they can do it.

Arteta, speaking at the launch of the new PUMA Kings, added: “There’s still 10 games to go [in the Premier League], there’s a massive game on Wednesday and we want to have a go and see what happens.

“For me, they [Bayern] are the best team we have played this season. They are very strong physically, some very talented players who can unlock the door at any moment and they are really solid and organised. They are tough. They are the most consistent team in Europe.

(Image: Shaun Botterill)

“We will never give up. If we do what we have to do, we can finish in the top four.

"Tottenham have some tough games to play and they will drop points. If they win 10 games in a row we will hold our hands up and say, 'They deserve it.' If they don’t, that’s when we can take advantage.

“The Champions League is massive. If we don’t get in those spots then it makes everything much more difficult.

“To any team with top players, you have to ask what’s going to happen in this answer and there’s only one answer: we want to improve the team.

“We want to be better, and next season we want to get more points - which means we will have won more games.

"I think everybody knows that. I think the board knows that and hopefully this summer we’ll do something about it.”

Mikel Arteta wears the PUMA King, available now at www.ProDirectSoccer.com. What’s in your nature? To find out if you’re a Control Freak like Mikel, head towww.facebook.com/PUMAfootball