Arteta pleased with Arsenal’s progress despite pain of losing title race

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is still hurting from losing the title last season (Nigel French/PA)

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta says it still “hurts deeply” to have missed out on the Premier League title, but he is happy with the progress he has made after taking over a club that had lost its “soul”.

The Gunners led the Premier League title race for 248 days last season before they were eventually chased down by Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, who went on to win the treble, leaving the Gunners trophyless for a third straight season.